Lok Sabha Question No. 596 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2022-12-09
Subject: Family Courts
Ministry: LAW AND JUSTICE
Asked by: Nishikant  Dubey, Haji Fazlur Rehman

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

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## LOK SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 596

## TO BE ANSWERED ON FRIDAY, THE 9 th  DECEMBER, 2022

## Family Courts

## 596.   DR. NISHIKANT DUBEY:

## SHRI HAJI FAZLUR REHMAN

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

- (a) the details of family courts functioning at present in the country, Statewise;
- (b) the details of cases filed, disposed off and pending in these courts during the last three years and the current year;
- (c) whether any problems have been faced by the States in the disposal of the cases filed in family courts;
- (d) if  so,  the  details  thereof  along  with  the  corrective  steps  taken  by  the Government in this regard; and
- (e) the  steps  taken  by  the  Government  for  expediting  the  disposal  of  such cases in the country?

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

(a)&(b):  The  details  of  family  courts  functioning  at  present  in  the  country, State-wise and cases filed, disposed off and pending during the last three years and the current year are given at Annexure.

(c)  to  (e):  Setting  up  of  family  courts  and  its  functioning  comes  within  the domain  of  the  State  Governments  in  consultation  with  the  respective  High Courts. The Family Courts Act, 1984 provides for establishment of family courts by  the  State  Governments  in  consultation  with  the  High  Courts  to  promote conciliation  and  secure  speedy  settlement  of  disputes  relating  to  marriage  and family affairs. Under Section 3(1) (a) of the Family Courts Act, it is mandatory for  the  State  Governments  to  set  up  a  family  court  for  every  area  in  the  State comprising a city or a town whose population exceeds one million. In other areas of the States, the family courts may be set up if the State Governments deem it necessary.Timely disposal of cases in courts depends on several factors which, inter-alia, include availability of adequate number of judges and judicial officers, 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.  The Central Government  is fully committed to speedy disposal of cases in accordance with Article 21 of the Constitution and reducing pendency.

The Government has taken several initiatives to provide an ecosystem for faster disposal of cases by the judiciary. The National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reforms was set up in August, 2011 with the twin objectives of increasing access by reducing delays and arrears in the system and enhancing accountability through structural changes and by setting performance standards and capacities. The Mission has been pursuing a co-ordinated approach for phased liquidation of arrears and pendency in judicial administration, which, inter-alia, involves better infrastructure  for  courts  including  computerization,  increase  in  strength  of subordinate  judiciary,  policy  and  legislative  measures  in  the  areas  prone  to excessive litigation, re-engineering of court procedure for quick disposal of cases and emphasis on human resource development. Major initiatives are as follows:

## (i) Improving infrastructure for Judicial Officers of District and

Subordinate Courts: As on date, Rs. 9291.79 crores has been released since the inception  of  the  Centrally  Sponsored  Scheme  (CSS)  for  Development  of Infrastructure Facilities for Judiciary in 1993-94.The number of court halls has increased from 15,818 as on 30.06.2014 to 21,159 as on 30.11.2022 and number of residential units has increased from 10,211 as on 30.06.2014 to 18,557 as on 30.11.2022  under this scheme.  In addition, 2,673 court halls and 1,662 residential  units  are  under  construction  (as  per  Nyaya  Vikas  Portal).  The Centrally Sponsored Scheme for the Development of Infrastructure Facilities for Judiciary has been extended till 2025-26 at a total cost of Rs. 9,000 crore, out of which central share will be Rs. 5,307 crore. Besides, construction of Court Halls and Residential Units, it would also cover construction of lawyer's halls, toilet complexes and digital computer rooms.

## (ii) 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 to 18,735 so far. WAN connectivity has been provided to 99.3% of court complexes. 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). As on 01.12.2022, litigants  can  access  case  status  of  over  21.74  crore  cases  and  19.80  crore order/judgments  pertaining  to  these  courts.  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  3,240  court complexes and 1,272 corresponding jails. With a view to handle the COVID- 19 challenges better and to make the transition to virtual hearings smoother, 619 eSewaKendras  have  been  set  up  at  court  complexes  to  facilitate  lawyers  and litigants needing assistance ranging from case status, getting judgments/orders, court/case  related  information  and  efiling  facilities.  Rs.  5.01  crore  has  been allocated for providing equipment in video conferencing cabins in various court complexes to facilitate virtual hearings. Rs. 12.12 crore has been allocated for 1,732 Help desk counters for efiling in various court complexes.

Video  conferencing  emerged  as  the  mainstay  of  the  courts  during  the Covid lockdown period as physical hearings and normal court proceedings in the congregational  mode  were  not  possible.  Since  Covid  lockdown  started,  the District  courts  heard  1,65,20,791  cases  while  the  High  Court  heard  75,80,347 cases  (totalling  2.41  crore)  till  31.10.2022  using  video  conferencing.  The Supreme Court had 2,97,435 hearings since the lockdown period upto03.09.2022.

## (iii) Filling up of vacant positions in Supreme Court, High Courts and District

and  Subordinate  Courts: From  01.05.2014  to  05.12.2022,  46  Judges  were appointed  in  Supreme  Court.  853  new  Judges  were  appointed  and  621 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 1108 currently. Sanctioned and working strength of Judicial Officers in District and Subordinate Courts has increased as follow:

| As on      | Sanctioned Strength   | Working Strength   |
|------------|-----------------------|--------------------|
| 31.12.2013 | 19,518                | 15,115             |
| 05.12.2022 | 24,994                | 19,205             |

## (iv) 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. In the past, Minister of Law & Justice has taken up the matter with Chief Justices of High Courts and Chief Ministers drawing their attention to  cases  pending  for  more  than  five  years  and  to  take  up  pendency  reduction campaign. The Department has developed an online portal for reporting by all High Courts on the compliance of Arrears Eradication Scheme guidelines of the Malimath Committee Report.

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## Annexure

## For Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 596 to be replied on 09.12.2022 Status of Family Courts

|       |                       | FUNCTIONAL COURT (as on 31st Oct 2022)   | CASES FILED   | CASES FILED   | CASES FILED   | CASES FILED      | CASES DISPOSED   | CASES DISPOSED   | CASES DISPOSED   | CASES DISPOSED   | CASES PENDING   | CASES PENDING   | CASES PENDING   | CASES PENDING    |
|-------|-----------------------|------------------------------------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|------------------|-----------------|-----------------|-----------------|------------------|
| S.NO. | STATES/UTs            | FUNCTIONAL COURT (as on 31st Oct 2022)   | 2019          | 2020          | 2021          | 2022 (up to Oct) | 2019             | 2020             | 2021             | 2022 (up to Oct) | 2019            | 2020            | 2021            | 2022 (up to Oct) |
| 1     | Andhra Pr             | 20                                       | 7421          | 3343          | 5635          | 5635             | 4827             | 2286             | 1632             | 3304             | 6763            | 10069           | 10069           | 12946            |
| 2     | A&N island            | 0                                        | 0             | 0             | 0             | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0               | 0               | 0               | 0                |
| 3     | Arunachal Pr.         | 0                                        | 0             | 0             | 0             | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0               | 0               | 0               | 0                |
| 4     | Assam                 | 7                                        | 5574          | 2732          | 3935          | 5141             | 7364             | 1574             | 4103             | 6092             | 8108            | 10108           | 9356            | 7901             |
| 5     | Bihar                 | 39                                       | 24377         | 11969         | 19382         | 20166            | 15336            | 5729             | 7795             | 18575            | 20774           | 58636           | 69792           | 71383            |
| 6     | Chandigarh            | 0                                        | 0             | 0             | 0             | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0               | 0               | 0               | 0                |
| 7     | Chhattisgarh          | 25                                       | 15069         | 5346          | 11525         | 12703            | 9236             | 3737             | 9527             | 11890            | 6882            | 15310           | 17779           | 18978            |
| 8     | D&N Haveli            | 0                                        | 0             | 0             | 0             | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0               | 0               | 0               | 0                |
| 9     | Delhi                 | 0                                        | 37978         | 19256         | 21382         | 22664            | 17638            | 5691             | 30166            | 21014            | 4210            | 40733           | 48520           | 0                |
| 10    | Diu &Daman            | 0                                        | 0             | 0             | 0             | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0               | 0               | 0               | 0                |
| 11    | Goa                   | 0                                        | 0             | 0             | 0             | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0               | 0               | 0               | 0                |
| 12    | Gujarat               | 30                                       | 27529         | 14041         | 18508         | 20446            | 13754            | 8918             | 22124            | 19947            | 0               | 33560           | 35335           | 35834            |
| 13    | Haryana               | 31                                       | 59033         | 29646         | 33315         | 39860            | 14909            | 18187            | 31589            | 41171            | 924             | 58511           | 65337           | 62950            |
| 14    | Himachal Pr           | 3                                        | 14745         | 7324          | 2706          | 5679             | 5570             | 7331             | 3096             | 4706             | 0               | 15618           | 5102            | 6092             |
| 15    | J&K                   | 0                                        | 0             | 0             | 0             | 0                | 47               | 0                | 0                | 0                | 876             | 0               | 0               | 0                |
| 16    | Jharkhand             | 30                                       | 12052         | 6215          | 9380          | 10953            | 6836             | 3537             | 5873             | 13668            | 4632            | 14507           | 19371           | 15975            |
| 17    | Karnataka             | 39                                       | 25114         | 16618         | 21684         | 23582            | 11645            | 8988             | 22603            | 23072            | 0               | 38365           | 39458           | 39958            |
| 18    | Kerala                | 28                                       | 60338         | 43022         | 50975         | 54866            | 25309            | 23067            | 47146            | 53286            | 0               | 100479          | 114020          | 115514           |
| 19    | Ladakh                | 0                                        | 0             | 0             | 0             | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0               | 0               | 0               | 0                |
| 20    | Lakshadweep           | 0                                        | 0             | 0             | 0             | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0               | 0               | 0               | 0                |
| 21    | Madhya Pr             | 0                                        | 37948         | 15950         | 18758         | 9386             | 15596            | 9922             | 18140            | 10162            | 0               | 15584           | 25769           | 0                |
| 22    | Maharashtra           | 40                                       | 29993         | 19554         | 29321         | 32768            | 65302            | 11774            | 26789            | 32811            | 107491          | 52079           | 67315           | 67272            |
| 23    | Manipur               | 0                                        | 887           | 342           | 441           | 557              | 466              | 311              | 251              | 930              | 210             | 634             | 634             | 0                |
| 24    | Meghalaya             | 0                                        | 0             | 0             | 0             | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0                | 0               | 0               | 0               | 0                |
| 25    | Mizoram               | 0                                        | 0             | 0             | 0             | 0                | 146              | 0                | 0                | 0                | 154             | 0               | 0               | 0                |
| 26    | Nagaland              | 2                                        | 147           | 82            | 185           | 220              | 41               | 88               | 150              | 185              | 0               | 66              | 153             | 200              |
| 27    | Odisha                | 30                                       | 13345         | 8038          | 10874         | 12056            | 4754             | 4159             | 8980             | 15823            | 0               | 39670           | 44689           | 40933            |
| 28    | Puducherry            | 2                                        | 751           | 668           | 873           | 1040             | 471              | 374              | 835              | 1114             | 0               | 1535            | 1452            | 1269             |
| 29    | Punjab                | 33                                       | 70374         | 23630         | 61023         | 59388            | 10249            | 14811            | 40297            | 60415            | 0               | 52198           | 85061           | 82413            |
| 30    | Rajasthan             | 50                                       | 39935         | 21518         | 30168         | 39736            | 16941            | 15731            | 27187            | 36224            | 0               | 44222           | 46048           | 50054            |
| 31    | Sikkim                | 4                                        | 277           | 179           | 240           | 303              | 173              | 128              | 286              | 358              | 6               | 188             | 195             | 161              |
| 32    | Tamil Nadu            | 40                                       | 21660         | 16316         | 21774         | 21355            | 14478            | 8840             | 13468            | 22980            | 6036            | 29970           | 32519           | 31458            |
| 33    | Telangana             | 23                                       | 9252          | 5733          | 10820         | 11592            | 9857             | 3451             | 11622            | 10358            | 9950            | 15469           | 18095           | 18779            |
| 34 35 | Tripura Uttar Pradesh | 9 189                                    | 2893 305487   | 1512 190709   | 2762 170634   | 3393 191001      | 1801 266775      | 1026 112214      | 2717 183793      | 3142 193854      | 937 405127      | 2551 413176     | 3604 396462     | 3863 392734      |
| 36    | Uttarakhand           | 18                                       | 11238         | 9508          | 10749         | 11147            | 4379             | 3588             | 11319            | 12022            | 567             | 15119           | 15997           | 15122            |
| 37    | West Bengal           | 2                                        | 721           | 298           | 165           | 272              | 8484             | 229              | 118              | 301              | 49723           | 0               | 1166            | 1128             |
|       |                       |                                          | 834138        |               |               |                  | 552384           | 275691           |                  |                  | 633370          |                 | 1173298         |                  |
|       | TOTAL                 | 694                                      |               | 473549        | 497447        | 615909           |                  |                  | 531606           | 617404           |                 | 1078357         |                 | 1092917          |