Lok Sabha Question No. 151 (STARRED), answered on 2022-02-11
Subject: Delay in Judicial Decisions due to COVID-19
Ministry: LAW AND JUSTICE
Asked by: Devendra (Alias) Bhole Singh Singh

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

## LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 151

## TO BE ANSWERED ON FRIDAY, THE 11th FEBRUARY, 2022

## DELAY IN JUDICIAL DECISIONS DUE TO COVID-19

## †*151.SHRI DEVENDRA SINGH BHOLE:

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

- (a) whether the COVID-19 pandemic has delayed judicial decisions in the country leading to under trial prisoners not getting timely and effective justice, if so, the details thereof;
- (b) whether the Government has formulated any scheme to deal with this situation; and
- (c) if so, the details thereof?

## ANSWER MINISTER OF LAW & JUSTICE (SHRI KIREN RIJIJU)

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

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## STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) TO (c) OF LOK SABHA  STARRED  QUESTION  NO.  151  FOR  ANSWER  ON  11.02.2022 REGARDING 'DELAY IN JUDICIAL DECISIONS DUE TO COVID-19'.

(a) to (c) Disposal of pending cases in courts is within the domain of the judiciary. No time frame  has  been  prescribed  for  disposal  of  various  kinds  of  cases  by  the  respective courts.  The  Central  Government  is  fully  committed  to  speedy  disposal  of  cases  in accordance with Article 21 of the Constitution and reducing pendency. After announcement of nation-wide lockdown, directions have been issued from time to time by the respective  High Courts  to the Subordinate  Courts  under  their administrative jurisdiction  for  hearing  of  urgent  civil  and  criminal  matters  in  virtual  or  physical  mode depending on local conditions and take up all kind of cases, including those pertaining to under-trial prisoners.

2. Following initiatives have been taken under eCourts project by the eCommittee of the Supreme Court and the Government to tackle the challenges poised by COVID-19 pandemic:
- i. Under  the  Wide  Area  Network  (WAN)  Project,  2960  courts  sites  have  been commissioned (as on 07.02.2022) with 10 Mbps to 100 Mbps bandwidth speed. This forms the backbone for ensuring data connectivity in courts across the length and breadth of the country.
- ii. Case Information Software (CIS) which forms the basis for the e-Court services is based on customized Free and Open-Source Software (FOSS) which has been developed by NIC. Currently CIS National Core Version 3.2 is being implemented in District Courts and the CIS National Core Version 1.0 is being implemented for the High Courts.A new software patch and user manual for COVID-19 management has also been developed to help in smart scheduling of cases.
- iii. National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG) is a database of orders, judgments and cases, created  as  an  online  platform  under  the  eCourts  Project.  It  provides  information relating to judicial proceedings/decisions of all computerized district and

subordinate courts of the country. Litigants can access case status information in respect of over 19.81 crore cases and more than 16.61 crore orders / judgments pertaining  to  these  computerized  (as  on  01.02.2022).  Open  APIs  have  been introduced  in  2020  to  allow  Central  and  State  Governments  and  institutional litigants  including  local  bodies  to  access  NJDG  data  to  improve  pendency monitoring and compliance.

- iv. As  part  of  eCourts  project,  7  platforms  have  been  created  to  provide  real  time information  on  case  status,  cause  lists,  judgements  etc.  to  lawyers/Litigants through  SMS  Push  and  Pull  (2,00,000  SMS  sent  daily),  Email  (2,50,000  sent daily),  multilingual  and  tactile  eCourts  services  Portal  (35  lakh  hits  daily),  JSC (Judicial Service centres) and Info Kiosks. In addition, Electronic Case Management Tools (ECMT) have been created with Mobile App for lawyers (total 72.20  lakh  downloads  till  3 rd January  2022)  and  JustIS  app  for  judges  (16,961 downloads till 2 nd February 2022). JustIS mobile app is now available in iOS as well.
- v. 17  Virtual  Courts  in  13  States/UTs  have  been  operationalized  to  handle  traffic challan cases. More than 1.24 crore cases have been handled by 17 virtual courts and in more than 21 lakhs cases online fine of more than Rs. 221 crore has been realised till 02.02.2022.
- vi. The Supreme Court of India emerged as a global leader by conducting 1,81,909 hearings (till 08.01.2022 since the beginning of lockdown period). The High Courts (57,39,966  cases)  and  Subordinate  Courts  (1,08,36,087  cases)  have  conducted 1.65  crore  virtual  hearings  till  30.11.2021.  VC  facilities  have  also  been  enabled between 3240 court complexes and corresponding 1272 jails. Funds for 2506 VC cabins and VC equipment for 14,443 court rooms have also been released. 1500 VC licenses have been procured to promote virtual hearings.
- vii. New e-filing  system  (version  3.0)  has  been  rolled  out  for  the  electronic  filing  of legal papers with upgraded features like new dashboard including the options of my  partners,  Case  Filing,  Vakalatnama,  pleading,  e-payments,  applications  and case  portfolio  management.  Draft  eFiling rules  have  been  formulated  and circulated to the High Courts for adoption. A total of 17 High Courts have adopted the model rules of e-Filing as on 31.12.2021.
- viii. e-Filing of cases requires the option for electronic payment of fees which includes court  fees,  fines  and  penalties  which  are  directly  payable  to  the  Consolidated Fund. Online payment of court fees, fines, penalties and judicial deposits has been initiated through https://pay.ecourts.gov.in. A  total of  16  High  Courts  have implemented ePayments in their respective jurisdictions. The Court Fees Act has been amended in 23 High Courts till 31.12.2021.
- ix. eSewa Kendras have been rolled out to bridge the digital divide  by  providing  e filing services to lawyers and litigants. Government has released Rs. 12.54 crore for setting up eSewa Kendras. As on 31.12.2021, 451 eSewa Kendra's have been made functional in District Courts under 25 High Courts.
- x. National  Service  and  Tracking  of  Electronic  Processes  (NSTEP)  has  been launched for technology enabled process serving and issuing of summons. It has currently been implemented in 26 States/ UTs.
- xi. A new 'Judgment Search' portal has been started with features such as search by Bench,  Case  Type,  Case  Number,  Year,  Petitioner/  Respondent  Name,  Judge Name,  Act,  Section,  Decision:  From  Date,  To  Date  and  Full  Text  Search.  This facility is being provided free of cost to all.
- xii. To  make  effective  use  of  database  created  through  National  Judicial  Data  Grid (NJDG) and to make the information available to public 30 LED Display Message Sign Board System called Justice Clocks, have been installed in 20 High Courts.
- xiii. Towards creating widespread awareness and familiarization of eFiling and eCourts services and to address 'skill divide', a manual on E filing and a Brochure on 'How to register for E Filing' has been made available in English, Hindi and 12 regional languages for the use of the lawyers. A YouTube channel has been created in the name of the e Court services with video tutorials on e-filing. The eCommittee of the Supreme Court of India has conducted trainings and awareness programmes on the ICT services. These programmes have covered nearly 3,60,993 stakeholders, including High Court Judges, Judges of the District Judiciary, Court Staff,  Master  Trainers  among  Judges/DSA,  Technical  Staff  of  High  Courts,  and Advocates.
3.       National  Legal  Service  Authority  (NALSA)  has  taken  the  following  measures during the COVID-19 pandemic to enable timely and effective justice:
- i. During  the  period  from  24 th March  2020  to  29 th January  2022,  more  than  1.95 crore cases were disposed off by the District and Subordinate Courts.
- ii. National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) moved holding of Lok Adalats to the virtual  platform  known  as  E-Lok Adalat.  The  first  E-Lok Adalat  was  held  on 27.06.2020 and since then E-Lok Adalats have been organized in 28 States / UTs; wherein 66.93 lakh cases were taken up and 23.47 lakh cases were disposed of.
- iii. During  the  period  from  1 st April  2020  to  31 st December  2021, more  than 1.41 crore pre-litigation and pending cases were disposed of in National Lok Adalats. Further, during the same period, 11.72 lakh pre-litigation and pending cases were settled through State Lok Adalats and 1.23 lakh pre-litigation cases were settled through Permanent Lok Adalats.
- iv. Legal Services Institutions have been mandated to conduct pre-suit mediation in the  commercial  matters  as  per  Section  12(A)  of  Commercial  Court  Act,  2018. During  1 st April  2020  -  30 th November 2021,  55,569  commercial  disputes  have been settled at pre-litigation stage through mediation.
- v. In  wake  of  threat  of  spreading  of  COVID-19  virus,  particularly,  in  overcrowded prisons,  the  State  Governments  and  UT  Administrations  have  constituted  High Powered  Committees  (HPCs)  comprising  of  Executive  Chairman  of  the  State Legal Services Authority (SLSA), the Principal Secretary (Home/Prison), Director General  of  Prison(s)  for  identification  and  facilitation  in  releasing  Undertrial Prisoners/Convicts either on interim bail or on parole.
- vi. During  the  lockdown  period  (March  -  May  2020),  58,797  Under  Trial  Prisoners (UTPs) and 20,972 convicts were released on interim bail/parole on recommendations of HPCs or through efforts of Legal Services Authorities. After emergence of the second wave of COVID-19 (April-May, 2021), 70,382 UTPs and 22,211 Convicts were released on interim bail/parole on the recommendations of HPCs.
- vii. During the period 1 st April  2020  to  31 st   December 2021, NALSA through SLSAs and  District  Legal  Services  Authorities  (DLSAs)  organized  18,582 Under Trial Review Committee (UTRC) meetings after which 28,115 inmates were released.
- viii. NALSA has issued a Protocol for Early Access to Justice at Pre-Arrest, Arrest and Remand Stage for providing assistance  to suspects and accused  at  Pre-Arrest, Arrest  and  Remand  Stage.  During  January  2020  to  September  2021,  legal assistance was provided to 8,433 suspects/accused at pre-arrest stage pursuant to  which  2,879  suspects/accused  were  not  arrested  by  the  police.  Further, assistance was provided to 10,191 arrestees at police stations before producing them  in  courts.  Moreover,  during  the  same  period,  1,65,947  persons  were provided legal assistance at remand stage and 73,452 bail applications were filed wherein bail was granted in 40,303 such matters.

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