Lok Sabha Question No. 303 (STARRED), answered on 2021-03-17
Subject: Shortage of Judges
Ministry: LAW AND JUSTICE
Asked by: Jyotsna Charandas Mahant

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA

## MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

## LOK SABHA

## STARRED QUESTION NO. † *303

TO BE ANSWERED ON WEDNESDAY, 17 th  MARCH, 2021.

## SHORTAGE OF JUDGES

## † *303. SHRIMATI JYOTSNA CHARANDAS MAHANT:

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

- (a) whether the Government has made any assessment regarding the shortage of judges and the vacant posts in the courts of the country and is so, the details
- thereof, State-wise;
- (b) whether  the  process  of  recruitment  has  started  against  the  said  vacancies during the last three years and if so, the details thereof, State-wise; and
- (c) whether any assessment has been made regarding the number of such vacant posts in Chhattisgarh and if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW & JUSTICE, COMMUNICATIONS AND ELECTRONICS

## & INFORMATION AND TECHNOLOGY (SHRI RAVI SHANKAR PRASAD)

- (a) to (c): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

## STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PARTS  (a)  TO  (c)  OF  LOK SABHA  STARRED  QUESTION  NO. †* 303  FOR  ANSWER  ON  17.03.2021 REGARDING 'SHORTAGE OF JUDGES'.

(a) & (b):A Statement showing the sanctioned strength, working strength, vacancies and appointment of Judges made in Supreme Court and High Courts during the last three years  i.e.  2018-2020  is  at  Annexure  I.  As  per  the  Constitutional  framework,  the appointments of Judges of the Supreme Court and High Courts are made under Articles 124, 217, and 224 of the Constitution of India respectively. Judges of the Supreme Court of  India  and  High  Courts  are  appointed  as  per  the  procedure  laid  down  in  the Memorandum  of  Procedure  (MoP)  prepared  in  1998  pursuant  to  the  Supreme  Court judgment of October 6, 1993 (Second Judges case) read with their Advisory Opinion of October 28,1998 (Third Judges case). As per MoP,  initiation of proposal for appointment of Judges in the Supreme Court vests with the Chief Justice of India while the same for Judges in the High Courts vests with the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court. Therefore, the filling up of vacancies in the High Courts is a collaborative and integrated process between the Executive and the Judiciary. It requires consultation and approval from various Constitutional authorities both at the Centre and State.

A Statement showing the sanctioned strength and working strength of Subordinate Judiciary during the last three years i.e. 2018-2020 is at Annexure-II. Under Article 235 of the Constitution of India, the administrative control over the members of district  and  subordinate  judiciary  in  the  States  vest  with  the  concerned  High  Court. Further, in exercise of powers conferred under proviso to Article 309 read with Articles 233 and 234 of the Constitution, the respective State Government, in consultation with the High Court, frames the Rules and Regulations regarding the issues of appointment, promotion, reservations, etc. of Judicial Officers in the State Judicial Service. Hence, in so  far  as  recruitment  of  judicial  officers  in  the  States  is  concerned,  respective  High Courts do it in  certain  States,  whereas  the  High  Courts  do  it  in  consultation  with  the State Public Service Commissions in other States. Central Government has no role in the  matter.  Recruitment  in  the  Subordinate  judiciary  is  an  ongoing  and  continuous process and each year vacancies are filled either fully or partially.

- (c):  Vacancies in Subordinate Judiciary are filled up every year in accordance with the time  schedule  prescribed  by  the  Hon'ble  Supreme  Court  of  India  in  its  order  dated 04.01.2007 passed in Civil Appeal no. 1867/2006 Malik Mazhar Sultan & Anr. vs. U.P. Public Service Commission . As per this time schedule, the vacancies for the category of District Judge (Entry Level) and Senior Civil Judge are to be notified commencing on 31st March of a calendar year and end by 31st October of the same year.

The  sanctioned  and  working  strength  of  Judicial  Officers  and  vacancies  in  the Subordinate Judiciary in the State of Chhattisgarh as on 28.02.2021 is as follows:-

|   Sanctioned Strength |   Working Strength |   Vacancy |
|-----------------------|--------------------|-----------|
|                   481 |                387 |        94 |

************

ANNEXURE-I

STATEMENT  REFERRED  TO  IN  REPLY  TO  PART  (a)  &  (b)  OF  LOK  SABHA STARRED  QUESTION NO. †* 303 FOR ANSWER  ON  17.03.2021  REGARDING SANCTIONED  STRENGTH,  WORKING  STRENGTH,  VACANCIES  AS  ON  11.03.2021 AND APPOINTMENT OF JUDGES MADE IN SUPREME COURT AND HIGH COURTS DURING THE LAST THREE YEARS i.e. 2018-2020.

| Sl. No.   | Name of the Court                                    | Sectioned Strength   | Working Strength   | Vacancies   | Number of appointment made during last three years i.e. 2018-2020   | Number of appointment made during last three years i.e. 2018-2020   | Number of appointment made during last three years i.e. 2018-2020   |
|-----------|------------------------------------------------------|----------------------|--------------------|-------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------|---------------------------------------------------------------------|
|           |                                                      |                      |                    |             | 2018                                                                | 2019                                                                | 2020                                                                |
| A         | Supreme Court                                        | 34                   | 30                 | 04          | 08                                                                  | 10                                                                  | -                                                                   |
| B         | High Court                                           |                      |                    |             |                                                                     |                                                                     | -                                                                   |
| 1         | Allahabad                                            | 160                  | 96                 | 64          | 28                                                                  | 10                                                                  | 04                                                                  |
| 2         | Andhra Pradesh                                       | 37                   | 19                 | 18          | -                                                                   | 02                                                                  | 07                                                                  |
| 3         | Bombay                                               | 94                   | 63                 | 31          | 04                                                                  | 11                                                                  | 04                                                                  |
| 4         | Calcutta                                             | 72                   | 32                 | 40          | 11                                                                  | 06                                                                  | 01                                                                  |
| 5         | Chhattisgarh                                         | 22                   | 14                 | 08          | 04                                                                  | -                                                                   | -                                                                   |
| 6         | Delhi                                                | 60                   | 31                 | 29          | 05                                                                  | 04                                                                  | -                                                                   |
| 7         | Gauhati                                              | 24                   | 20                 | 04          | 02                                                                  | 04                                                                  | -                                                                   |
| 8         | Gujarat                                              | 52                   | 30                 | 22          | 04                                                                  | 03                                                                  | 07                                                                  |
| 9         | Himachal Pradesh                                     | 13                   | 10                 | 03          | -                                                                   | 02                                                                  | -                                                                   |
| 10        | High Court for UT of Jammu& Kashmir and UT of Ladakh | 17                   | 11                 | 06          | 02                                                                  | -                                                                   | 05                                                                  |
| 11        | Jharkhand                                            | 25                   | 17                 | 08          | 03                                                                  | 02                                                                  | -                                                                   |
| 12        | Karnataka                                            | 62                   | 46                 | 16          | 12                                                                  | 10                                                                  | 10                                                                  |
| 13        | Kerala                                               | 47                   | 40                 | 07          | 04                                                                  | 01                                                                  | 06                                                                  |
| 14        | Madhya Pradesh                                       | 53                   | 27                 | 26          | 08                                                                  | 02                                                                  | -                                                                   |
| 15        | Madras                                               | 75                   | 62                 | 13          | 08                                                                  | 01                                                                  | 10                                                                  |
| 16        | Manipur                                              | 05                   | 05                 | 0           | -                                                                   | -                                                                   | 01                                                                  |
| 17        | Meghalaya                                            | 04                   | 04                 | 0           | 01                                                                  | 01                                                                  | -                                                                   |
| 18        | Orissa                                               | 27                   | 15                 | 12          | 01                                                                  | 01                                                                  | 02                                                                  |
| 19        | Patna                                                | 53                   | 21                 | 32          | -                                                                   | 04                                                                  | -                                                                   |
| 20        | Punjab& Haryana                                      | 85                   | 47                 | 38          | 07                                                                  | 10                                                                  | 01                                                                  |
| 21        | Rajasthan                                            | 50                   | 23                 | 27          | -                                                                   | 03                                                                  | 06                                                                  |
| 22        | Sikkim                                               | 03                   | 03                 | 0           | -                                                                   | -                                                                   | -                                                                   |
| 23        | Telangana                                            | 24                   | 14                 | 10          | -                                                                   | 03                                                                  | 01                                                                  |
| 24        | Tripura                                              | 05                   | 04                 | 01          | 01                                                                  | -                                                                   | 01                                                                  |
| 25        | Uttarakhand                                          | 11                   | 07                 | 04          | 03                                                                  | 01                                                                  | -                                                                   |
|           | Total                                                | 1080                 | 661                | 419         | 108                                                                 | 81                                                                  | 66                                                                  |

ANNEXURE-II STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) & (b) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. †* 303  FOR  ANSWER  ON  17.03.2021  REGARDING  SANCTIONED  AND WORKING  STRENGTH,  VACANCIES  OF  SUBORDINATE  JUDICIARY  DURING  THE LAST THREE YEARS i.e. 2018-2020.

|        |                     | 2018                | 2018             | 2018    | 2019                | 2019             | 2019    | 2020                | 2020             | 2020    |
|--------|---------------------|---------------------|------------------|---------|---------------------|------------------|---------|---------------------|------------------|---------|
| Sl. No | States &Uts         | Sanctioned Strength | Working Strength | Vacancy | Sanctioned Strength | Working Strength | Vacancy | Sanctioned Strength | Working Strength | Vacancy |
| 1      | Andaman and Nicobar | 11                  | 11               | 0       | 0                   | 13               | -13     | 0                   | 13               | -13     |
| 2      | Andhra Pradesh      | 494                 | 445              | 49      | 597                 | 529              | 68      | 607                 | 510              | 97      |
| 3      | Arunachal Pradesh   | 30                  | 25               | 5       | 41                  | 27               | 14      | 41                  | 32               | 9       |
| 4      | Assam               | 430                 | 383              | 47      | 441                 | 412              | 29      | 466                 | 412              | 54      |
| 5      | Bihar               | 1845                | 1205             | 640     | 1925                | 1149             | 776     | 1936                | 1433             | 503     |
| 6      | Chandigarh          | 30                  | 30               | 0       | 30                  | 29               | 1       | 30                  | 26               | 4       |
| 7      | Chhattisgarh        | 452                 | 397              | 55      | 468                 | 394              | 74      | 481                 | 387              | 94      |
| 8      | D &NHaveli          | 3                   | 3                | 0       | 3                   | 3                | 0       | 3                   | 2                | 1       |
| 9      | Daman &Diu          | 4                   | 4                | 0       | 4                   | 3                | 1       | 4                   | 4                | 0       |
| 10     | Delhi               | 799                 | 541              | 258     | 799                 | 681              | 118     | 799                 | 649              | 150     |
| 11     | Goa                 | 50                  | 42               | 8       | 50                  | 43               | 7       | 50                  | 40               | 10      |
| 12     | Gujarat             | 1506                | 1150             | 356     | 1521                | 1185             | 336     | 1521                | 1152             | 369     |
| 13     | Haryana             | 651                 | 489              | 162     | 772                 | 475              | 297     | 772                 | 493              | 279     |
| 14     | Himachal Pradesh    | 159                 | 149              | 10      | 175                 | 153              | 22      | 175                 | 161              | 14      |
| 15     | Jammu and Kashmir   | 310                 | 224              | 86      | 290                 | 232              | 58      | 296                 | 255              | 41      |
| 16     | Jharkhand           | 676                 | 460              | 216     | 677                 | 461              | 216     | 675                 | 544              | 131     |
| 17     | Karnataka           | 2614                | 2181             | 433     | 1345                | 1106             | 239     | 1357                | 1071             | 286     |
| 18     | Kerala              | 496                 | 433              | 63      | 536                 | 457              | 79      | 538                 | 470              | 68      |
| 19     | Ladakh              | 0                   | 0                | 0       | 0                   | 0                | 0       | 16                  | 8                | 8       |
| 20     | Lakshadweep         | 3                   | 3                | 0       | 3                   | 3                | 0       | 3                   | 3                | 0       |
| 21     | Madhya Pradesh      | 1872                | 1361             | 511     | 2021                | 1620             | 401     | 2021                | 1610             | 411     |
| 22     | Maharashtra         | 2011                | 1844             | 167     | 2189                | 1942             | 247     | 2190                | 1940             | 250     |
| 23     | Manipur             | 55                  | 40               | 15      | 55                  | 39               | 16      | 54                  | 36               | 18      |
| 24     | Meghalaya           | 97                  | 39               | 58      | 97                  | 49               | 48      | 97                  | 49               | 48      |
| 25     | Mizoram             | 67                  | 46               | 21      | 64                  | 46               | 18      | 64                  | 43               | 21      |
| 26     | Nagaland            | 33                  | 26               | 7       | 33                  | 25               | 8       | 33                  | 26               | 7       |
| 27     | Odisha              | 911                 | 755              | 156     | 919                 | 770              | 149     | 950                 | 756              | 194     |
| 28     | Puducherry          | 26                  | 19               | 7       | 26                  | 11               | 15      | 26                  | 11               | 15      |
| 29     | Punjab              | 674                 | 530              | 144     | 675                 | 579              | 96      | 692                 | 593              | 99      |
| 30     | Rajasthan           | 1337                | 1108             | 229     | 1428                | 1121             | 307     | 1489                | 1292             | 197     |
| 31     | Sikkim              | 23                  | 19               | 4       | 25                  | 19               | 6       | 25                  | 20               | 5       |
| 32     | Tamil Nadu          | 1143                | 905              | 238     | 1255                | 1080             | 175     | 1298                | 1049             | 249     |
| 33     | Telangana           | 493                 | 445              | 48      | 413                 | 334              | 79      | 474                 | 378              | 96      |
| 34     | Tripura             | 115                 | 75               | 40      | 120                 | 96               | 24      | 120                 | 97               | 23      |
| 35     | Uttar Pradesh       | 3225                | 2037             | 1188    | 3416                | 2578             | 838     | 3634                | 2581             | 1053    |
| 36     | Uttarakhand         | 293                 | 234              | 59      | 294                 | 228              | 66      | 297                 | 255              | 42      |

| 37   | West Bengal   |   1013 |   938 |   75 |   1014 |   918 |   96 |   1014 |   918 |   96 |
|------|---------------|--------|-------|------|--------|-------|------|--------|-------|------|
|      | TOTAL         |  23951 | 18596 | 5355 |  23721 | 18810 | 4911 |  24247 | 19319 | 4928 |