Lok Sabha Question No. 686 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2020-02-05
Subject: Pending Court Cases
Ministry: LAW AND JUSTICE
Asked by: Jyotirmay Singh Mahato, Thalikkottai Rajuthevar Baalu

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

## LOK  SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 686

## TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, THE 05 th  FEBRUARY, 2020.

## Pending Court Cases

## 686.  SHRI JYOTIRMAY SINGH MAHATO:

SHRI T.R.BAALU:

Will the Minister of LAW AND JUSTICE be pleased to state:

- (a) whether there is huge backlog of pending cases in courts;
- (b)  if  so,  the  State-wise  details  of  civil  and  criminal  cases  pending  in  District Courts, High Courts and the Supreme Court across the country including West Bengal as on date alongwith the stages of most of the pending cases;
- (c)  whether  the  Government  has  taken  steps  to  accelerate  the  judicial  process and expedite adjudication of the cases pertaining to social issues and if so, the details thereof;
- (d)  whether Government is facing major challenges in the Indian judicial system; and
- (e) if so, the measures taken by the Government to create a citizen centric legal systems?

## ANSWER

## MINISTER OF LAW & JUSTICE, COMMUNICATIONS AND ELECTRONICS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY (SHRI RAVI SHANKAR PRASAD)

(a) and (b): As per data available on the website of Supreme Court, 59,859 cases are pending in the Supreme Court of India as on 02.01.2020. As per data available on the National  Judicial  Data  Grid  (NJDG)  as  on  29.01.2020,  about  3.19  crore  cases  are pending in the District & Subordinate Courts. The details of cases pending in the District & Subordinate Courts, State-wise, including in the State of West Bengal, is given in the Annexure-I. As  per  data  available  on  the National  Judicial  Data  Grid  (NJDG),  45.81 lakh  cases are pending in High Courts. The details of cases pending in  various High Courts including Calcutta High Court, is given in the Annexure-II .

(c) & (d): Disposal of cases in courts is within the domain of judiciary. Challenges faced for timely disposal of cases in courts , inter-alia , include availability of adequate number of judges, supporting court staff and physical infrastructure, complexity of facts involved, nature  of  evidence,  co-operation  of  stake  holders  viz.  bar,  investigation  agencies, witnesses and litigants and proper application of rules and procedures.

However, the Union Government is committed to speedy disposal of cases and reduction in pendency of cases including cases pertaining to social issues. The National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reforms has adopted many strategic initiatives, including improving infrastructure [court halls and residential units] for Judicial Officers of District and Subordinate Courts, leveraging Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for better justice delivery, filling up of vacant positions of Judges in High Courts and Supreme Court, reduction in pendency through follow up by Arrears Committees  at  District,  High  Court  and  Supreme  Court  level,  emphasis  on  Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) and initiatives to fast track special type of cases. The major steps taken during the last five years under various initiatives are as follows:

- (a)  Improving infrastructure for Judicial Officers of District and Subordinate Courts: As on  date,  Rs.  7,453.10  crores  have  been  released  since  the  inception  of  the Centrally Sponsored Scheme (CSS) for Development of Infrastructure Facilities for Judiciary in 1993-94. Out of this, Rs.4, 008.80 crores (which is 53.79% of the total amount released till date) have been released to the States and UTs since April, 2014. The number of court halls has increased from 15,818 as on 30.06.2014 to 19,632  as  on  29.01.2020  and  number  of  residential  units  has  increased  from 10,211  as  on  30.06.2014  to  17,412  as  on  29.01.2020  under  this  scheme.  In addition, 2,713 court halls and 1,893 residential units are under construction.
- (b)  Leveraging Information and Communication Technology (ICT) for improved justice delivery: Government has been implementing the e-Courts Mission Mode Project throughout the country for Information and Communication Technology enablement of district and subordinate courts.  Number of computerized District & Subordinate courts has increased from 13,672 to 16,845 registering an increase of 3,173  during  2014  till  date.  New  and  user-friendly  version  of  Case  Information Software has been developed and deployed at all the computerized District and Subordinate  Courts.  All stakeholders  including  Judicial  Officers  can  access information  relating  to  judicial  proceedings/decisions  of  computerized  District  & Subordinate Courts and High Courts on the National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG). Currently,  case  status  information  in  respect  of  over  12.97  crore  pending  and

disposed cases and more than 11.15 crore orders / judgments pertaining to these computerized  courts  is  available  on  NJDG.  eCourts  services  such  as  details  of case  registration,  cause  list,  case  status,  daily  orders  &  final  judgments  are available to litigants and advocates through eCourts web portal, Judicial Service Centres (JSC) in all computerized courts, eCourts Mobile App, email service, SMS push & pull services. Video Conferencing facility has been enabled between 3240 court complexes and 1272 corresponding jails.

- (c)  Filling  up  of  vacant  positions  in  Supreme  Court,  High  Courts  and  District  and Subordinate Courts: From 01.05.2014 to 30.01.2020, 35 Judges were appointed in Supreme Court. 515 new Judges were appointed and 435 Additional Judges were made permanent in the High Courts. Sanctioned strength of Judges of High Courts has  been  increased  from  906  in  May,  2014  to  1079  currently.  Sanctioned  and working  strength  of  Judicial  Officers  in  District  and  Subordinate  Courts  has increased as follows:
- (d)  Reduction in Pendency through / follow up by Arrears Committees: In pursuance of  resolution  passed  in  Chief  Justices'  Conference  held  in  April,  2015,  Arrears Committees have been set up in High Courts to clear cases pending for more than five  years.  Arrears  Committees  have  been  set  up  under  District  Judges  too. Arrears Committee has been constituted in the Supreme Court to formulate steps to reduce pendency of cases in High Courts and District Courts.
- (e)  Emphasis on Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR): Commercial Courts Act, 2015 (as amended on 20 th August, 2018) stipulates mandatory pre-institution mediation and  settlement  of  commercial  disputes.  Amendment  to  the  Arbitration  and Conciliation Act,  1996  has  been  made  by  the  Arbitration and  Conciliation (Amendment)  Act  2015  for  expediting  the  speedy  resolution  of  disputes  by prescribing timelines.
- (f) Initiatives to Fast Track Special Type  of Cases:  The  Fourteenth Finance Commission endorsed the proposal of the Government to strengthen the judicial system  in  States  which  included,  inter-alia,  establishing  Fast  Track  Courts  for cases  of  heinous  crimes;  cases  involving  senior  citizens,  women,  children  etc., and urged the State Governments to use the additional fiscal space provided in

| As on      | Sanctioned Strength   | Working Strength   |
|------------|-----------------------|--------------------|
| 31.12.2013 | 19,518                | 15,115             |
| 29.01.2020 | 23,782                | 18,812             |

the form of enhanced tax devolution form 32% to 42% to meet such requirements. As on 30.09.2019, 704 Fast Track Courts are functional for heinous crimes, crimes against  women and children, family and matrimonial disputes, etc.  To fast  track criminal  cases  involving  elected  MPs  /  MLAs,  ten  (10)  Special  Courts  are functional  in  nine  (9)  States  (1  each  in  Madhya  Pradesh,  Maharashtra,  Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal and 2 in NCT of Delhi) and proportionate funds have been released to these States by the Government. Further, Government has approved a scheme for setting up 1023 Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) across the country for expeditious disposal of pending cases of Rape under IPC and crimes under POCSO Act. As on date, 26 States/UTs  have  joined  the  scheme  for  setting  up  of  648  FTSCs  including  363 exclusive  POCSO  courts.  Rs.99.35  crore  (out  of  the  total  allocation  of  Rs.100 crore) has already been released as the first installment to these 26 States.

(e): Through  computerization of 16,845 District & Subordinate Courts and ICT enablement under the eCourts Project Phase-II, several services have been provided to  litigants,  lawyers  and  Judiciary  which  facilitate  expeditious  delivery  of judicial services. eCourts services such as details of case registration, cause list, case status, daily orders & final judgments are available to litigants and advocates through eCourts web portal, Judicial Service Centres (JSC) in all computerized courts, eCourts Mobile App, email service, SMS push & pull services. Integration of eCourts Services through Common Service Centers (CSCs) has been successfully completed. eCourt CNR  Service  has  been  enabled  through  Digital  Seva  Portal  in  all  CSC  locations across  the  country. National  Judicial  Data  Grid  (NJDG)  for  District  &  Subordinate Courts, created as an online platform under the Project, provides information relating to judicial proceedings/decisions of computerized district and subordinate courts of the country. Currently, all stakeholders including Judicial Officers can access case status information in respect of over 12.97 crore pending and disposed cases and more than 11.15  crore  orders  /  judgments  pertaining  to  these  computerized  courts.  Video Conferencing  facility  has  been  enabled  between  3240  court  complexes  &  1272 corresponding jails.

*****

Annexure - I

Details of cases pending in the District & Subordinate Courts, State-wise [as on 29.01.2020]

|   Sl. No | Name of States/UTs   | Pending Cases (Civil)   | Pending Cases (Criminal)   | Total Number of Cases pending in District and Subordinate Courts$$   |
|----------|----------------------|-------------------------|----------------------------|----------------------------------------------------------------------|
|        1 | A & N Island         | -------                 | -------                    | ------                                                               |

| 2.   | Andhra Pradesh    | 310520   | 254173    | 564693     |
|------|-------------------|----------|-----------|------------|
| 3.   | Telangana         | 245477   | 320930    | 566407     |
| 4.   | Arunachal Pradesh | -------- | --------  | -------    |
| 5.   | Assam             | 68310    | 229062    | 297372     |
| 6.   | Bihar             | 400260   | 2475453   | 2875713    |
| 7.   | Chandigarh        | 18242    | 30020     | 48262      |
| 8.   | Chhattisgarh      | 57124    | 222286    | 279410     |
| 9.   | D & N Haveli      | 1421     | 1612      | 3033       |
| 10.  | Daman & Diu       | 1156     | 1154      | 2310       |
| 11.  | Delhi             | 200714   | 665551    | 866265     |
| 12.  | Goa               | 13614    | 11199     | 24813      |
| 13.  | Gujarat           | 428268   | 1183091   | 1611359    |
| 14.  | Haryana           | 314158   | 554962    | 869120     |
| 15.  | Himachal Pradesh  | 123147   | 167318    | 290465     |
| 16.  | Jammu & Kashmir   | 73843    | 103411    | 177254     |
| 17.  | Jharkhand         | 68734    | 317330    | 386064     |
| 18.  | Karnataka         | 744877   | 810740    | 1555617    |
| 19.  | Kerala            | 402141   | 892769    | 1294910    |
| 20.  | Ladakh            | 155      | 295       | 450        |
| 21.  | Lakshadweep       | -------- | --------  | ------     |
| 22.  | Madhya Pradesh    | 330157   | 1119226   | 1449383    |
| 23.  | Maharashtra       | 1232698  | 2533702   | 3766400    |
| 24.  | Manipur           | 6106     | 3720      | 9826       |
| 25.  | Meghalaya         | 2366     | 6481      | 8847       |
| 26.  | Mizoram           | 1161     | 1383      | 2544       |
| 27.  | Nagaland          | -------- | --------  | ---------  |
| 28.  | Orissa            | 262517   | 982315    | 1244832    |
| 29.  | Punjab            | 276208   | 363475    | 639683     |
| 30.  | Rajasthan         | 435695   | 1263473   | 1699168    |
| 31.  | Sikkim            | 527      | 775       | 1302       |
| 32.  | Tamil Nadu        | 651866   | 501396    | 1153262    |
| 33.  | Puducherry        | -------- | --------- | ---------- |
| 34.  | Tripura           | 7559     | 17550     | 25109      |
| 35.  | Uttar Pradesh     | 1743565  | 5947401   | 7690966    |
| 36.  | Uttarakhand       | 34760    | 173251    | 208011     |
| 37.  | West Bengal       | 513611   | 1776853   | 2290464    |
|      | Total             | 8970957  | 22932357  | 31903314   |

Note: Data on District and Subordinate Courts in the States of Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland , and Union Territories of Lakshadweep and Puducherry are not available on the web-portal of NJDG. Data in respect of Andaman & Nicobar Islands is not available on NJDG Portal

## Annexure -II

## Details of cases pending in various High Courts [as on 29.01.2020]

|   Sl. No | Name of High Courts         |   Pending Cases (Civil ) |   Pending Cases (Criminal) |   Writs |   Number of Cases pending in High Courts |
|----------|-----------------------------|--------------------------|----------------------------|---------|------------------------------------------|
|        1 | Allahabad High Court        |                   157303 |                     327480 |  247456 |                                   732239 |
|        2 | Calcutta High Court         |                    21708 |                        198 |       0 |                                    21906 |
|        3 | Gauhati High Court          |                    18056 |                       9374 |   20139 |                                    47569 |
|        4 | High Court for the State of |                    84687 |                      30769 |  104293 |                                   219749 |

|       | Telangana                      |         |         |         |         |
|-------|--------------------------------|---------|---------|---------|---------|
| 5.    | High Court of Andhra Pradesh   |   70264 |   30485 |   95804 |  196553 |
| 6.    | High Court of Bombay           |  167890 |   31266 |   68653 |  267809 |
| 7.    | High Court of Chhattisgarh     |   19924 |   27192 |   23117 |   70233 |
| 8.    | High Court of Delhi            |   33291 |   21014 |   25742 |   80047 |
| 9.    | High Court of Gujarat          |   42888 |   40754 |   46338 |  129980 |
| 10.   | High Court of Himachal Pradesh |   32473 |    7910 |   18163 |   58546 |
| 11.   | High Court of Jammu & Kashmir  |   39770 |    8142 |   27701 |   75613 |
| 12.   | High Court of Jharkhand        |   15724 |   43220 |   24755 |   83699 |
| 13.   | High Court of Karnataka        |  138798 |   34964 |   74523 |  248285 |
| 14.   | High Court of Kerala           |   86827 |   45217 |   66695 |  198739 |
| 15.   | High Court of Madhya Pradesh   |  119334 |  136191 |  105560 |  361085 |
| 16.   | High Court of Manipur          |    3462 |     344 |       0 |    3806 |
| 17.   | High Court of Meghalaya        |     433 |      96 |     585 |    1114 |
| 18.   | High Court of Punjab & Haryana |  219488 |  208805 |  113227 |  541520 |
| 19.   | High Court of Rajasthan        |  215790 |  122203 |  134248 |  472241 |
| 20.   | High Court of Sikkim           |      78 |      59 |     100 |     237 |
| 21.   | High Court of Tripura          |     883 |     402 |    1088 |    2373 |
| 22.   | High Court of Uttarakhand      |   25370 |   14689 |       1 |   40060 |
| 23.   | Madras High Court              |  257953 |   45145 |  100078 |  403176 |
| 24.   | Orissa High Court              |   40633 |   43962 |   66816 |  151411 |
| 25.   | Patna High Court               |   95047 |   78582 |       0 |  173629 |
| Total | Total                          | 1908074 | 1308463 | 1365082 | 4581619 |

*****