Lok Sabha Question No. 895 (UNSTARRED), answered on 2024-11-29
Subject: Pending Cases
Ministry: LAW AND JUSTICE
Asked by: Shri Zia Ur Rehman

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

## LOK SABHA

## UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. †895 TO BE ANSWERED ON FRIDAY, THE 29 th  NOVEMBER, 2024

## PENDING CASES

## †895.   SHRI ZIA UR REHMAN:

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

- (a)  whether  the  Government  has  formulated  any  policy  to  reduce  the number of pending cases in the courts and expedite the legal process;
- (b) if so, the details thereof; and
- (c) if not, the reasons therefor?

## ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE; AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS

## (SHRI ARJUN RAM MEGHWAL)

- (a) to (c): Disposal  of  cases  in  courts  is  within  the  exclusive  domain  of  the judiciary. However, the Central Government has unwavering commitment towards speedy disposal of cases and reducing pendency as mandated under Article 21 of the  Constitution.  To  this  end,  the  Government  has  taken  several  initiatives  to provide an ecosystem for faster disposal of cases by the judiciary:
- i. 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  coordinated  approach  for  phased  liquidation  of  arrears  and pendency in judicial administration, which, inter-alia, involves better infrastructure  for  courts  including  computerization,  increase  in  sanctioned strength of District and Subordinate Courts, 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.

- ii. Under the Centrally Sponsored Scheme for development of Judicial Infrastructure, funds are being released to States/UTs for construction of court halls, residential quarters for judicial officers, lawyers' halls, toilet complexes and digital computer rooms that ease the life of various stakeholders including the litigants, thereby aiding justice delivery. As on date, Rs. 11571.57 crores have  been  released  since  the  inception  of  the  Centrally  Sponsored  Scheme (CSS) for Development of Infrastructure Facilities for the Judiciary in 1993-94. The  number  of  court  halls  has  increased  from  15,818  as  on  30.06.2014  to 23,590 as on 31.10.2024, and number of residential units has increased from 10,211 as on 30.06.2014 to 21,076 as on 31.10.2024, under this scheme.
- iii. Further  under  the  Phase  I  &  II  of  the  e-Courts  Mission  Mode  Project, information and communication technology (ICT) had been leveraged for IT enablement of District and Subordinate Courts. 18,735 District and Subordinate Courts were computerized till 2023. WAN connectivity has been provided to 99.5% of court complexes.  Video conferencing facility has been enabled between 3,240 court complexes and 1,272 corresponding jails. As on 30.09.2024, 1375 eSewa Kendras in District Courts and 28 eSewa Kendras in High  Courts  have  been  made  functional  to  bridge  the  digital  divide  by providing  citizen  centric  services  to  lawyers  and  litigants.  28  virtual  courts have  been  set  up  in  21  States/UTs.  As  on  30.09.2024,  these  courts  have handled more than 5.82 crore cases and realized more than Rs. 634.74 crores in fines. The Cabinet on 13.09.2023 has approved eCourts Phase-III at an outlay of Rs.7,210 crore. Taking the gains of Phase-I and Phase-II to the next level,

the e-Courts Phase-III aims to usher in a regime of enhanced ease of justice by moving towards digital, online and paperless courts. It intends to incorporate latest technology such as Artificial Intelligence (AI), Block Chain, etc. to make justice  delivery  progressively  more  robust,  easy  and  accessible  to  all  the stakeholders.

- iv. The  Government  has  been  regularly  filling  up  vacancies  of  Judges  in  the Supreme Court of India and the High Courts. From 01.05.2014 to 21.11.2024, 64  Judges  were  appointed  in  the  Supreme  Court.  999  new  Judges  were appointed and 767 Additional Judges were made permanent in the High Courts during the same period. The sanctioned strength of Judges of the High Courts has been increased from 906 in May, 2014 to 1122 till now. The sanctioned and working strength of judicial officers in District and Subordinate Courts has increased as under:

| As on      | Sanctioned Strength   | Working Strength   |
|------------|-----------------------|--------------------|
| 31.12.2013 | 19,518                | 15,115             |
| 21.11.2024 | 25,725                | 20,487             |

However, filling up of vacancies in District and Subordinate judiciary falls within the domain of the State Governments and High Courts concerned.

- v. In  pursuance  of  a  Resolution  passed  in  Chief  Justices'  Conference  held  in April,  2015,  Arrears  Committees  have  been  set  up  in  all  25  High  Courts  to clear cases pending for more than five years.  Arrears Committees have been set up under District Courts as well.
- vi. Under the aegis of the Fourteenth Finance Commission, the Fast Track Courts have been established for dealing with cases of heinous crimes; cases involving senior citizens, women, children, etc. As on 30.09.2024, 862 Fast Track Courts are functional for handling cases of heinous crimes, crimes against women and children, etc. To fast-track criminal cases involving elected MPs / MLAs, ten (10) Special Courts are functional in nine (9) States/UTs. Further, the Central Government has approved a Scheme for setting up Fast Track Special Courts (FTSCs) across the  country  for  the  expeditious  disposal  of  pending  cases  of

Rape and POCSO Act. As on 30.09.2024, 750 FTSCs including 408 exclusive POCSO (ePOCSO) Courts are functional in 30 States/UTs across the country which have disposed of more than 2,81,000 cases.

- vii. With a view to reduce pendency and unclogging of the courts, the Government has amended various laws like the Negotiable Instruments (Amendment) Act, 2018,  the  Commercial  Courts  (Amendment)  Act,  2018,  the  Specific  Relief (Amendment) Act, 2018, the Arbitration and Conciliation (Amendment) Act, 2019 and the Criminal Laws (Amendment) Act, 2018.
- viii. Alternate  Dispute  Resolution  methods  have  been  promoted  whole  heartedly. Accordingly, the Commercial Courts Act, 2015 was amended in August, 2018 making Pre-institution Mediation and Settlement (PIMS) mandatory in case 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.

Under  the  Commercial  Courts  Act,  2015,  there  is  provision  for  case management hearing which provides for an efficient, effective and purposeful judicial  management  of  a  case  so  as  to  achieve  a  timely  and  qualitative resolution of a dispute. It assists in early identification of disputed issues of fact and law, establishment of procedural calendar for the life of the case and the exploration of possibilities of the resolution of the dispute.

Another novel feature introduced for the commercial courts is the system of color banding which limits the number of adjournments that can be granted in  any  commercial  matter  to  three  and  alerts  the  judges  about  listing  of  the cases in accordance with their stage of pendency.

- ix. Lok  Adalat  is  an  important  Alternative  Disputes  Resolution  Mechanism available to common people. It is a forum where the disputes/ cases pending in the court of law or at pre-litigation stage are settled/ compromised amicably. Under the Legal Services Authorities (LSA) Act, 1987, an award made by a Lok Adalat is deemed to be a decree of a civil court and is final and binding on

all parties and no appeal lies against thereto before any court. Lok Adalat is not a permanent establishment. National Lok Adalats are organized simultaneously in all Taluks, Districts and High Courts on a pre-fixed date.

The details of the cases disposed of in National Lok Adalats during the last four years are as under: -

| Years                | Pre-litigation Cases   | Pending Cases   | Grand Total   |
|----------------------|------------------------|-----------------|---------------|
| 2021                 | 72,06,294              | 55,81,743       | 1,27,88,037   |
| 2022                 | 3,10,15,215            | 1,09,10,795     | 4,19,26,010   |
| 2023                 | 7,10,32,980            | 1,43,09,237     | 8,53,42,217   |
| 2024 (upto 09.11.24) | 6,46,35,285            | 1,26,34,580     | 7,72,69,865   |
| Total                | 17,38,89,774           | 4,34,36,355     | 21,73,26,129  |

- x. The Government launched the Tele-Law programme in 2017, which provides an  effective and  reliable  e-interface  platform  connecting  the  needy  and disadvantaged  sections  seeking  legal  advice  and  consultation  with  panel lawyers via video conferencing, telephone and chat facilities available at the Common Service  Centres  (CSCs)  situated  in  Gram  Panchayats  and  through Tele-Law mobile App.
- xi. Efforts  have  been  made  to  institutionalize  pro  bono  culture  and  pro  bono lawyering  in  the  country.  A  technological  framework  has  been  put  in  place where advocates volunteering to give their time and services for pro bono work can  register  as  Pro  Bono  Advocates  on  Nyaya  Bandhu  (Android  &  iOS  and

*Percentage Wise break-up of Tele - Law Data

| Category            | Cases Registered    | %Wise Break Up      | Advice Enabled      | %Wise Break Up      |
|---------------------|---------------------|---------------------|---------------------|---------------------|
| Gender Wise         | Gender Wise         | Gender Wise         | Gender Wise         | Gender Wise         |
| Female              | 4014611             | 39.12               | 3963499             | 39.06               |
| Male                | 6247980             | 60.88               | 6183286             | 60.94               |
| Caste Category Wise | Caste Category Wise | Caste Category Wise | Caste Category Wise | Caste Category Wise |
| General             | 2387060             | 23.26               | 2352649             | 23.19               |
| OBC                 | 3252495             | 31.69               | 3213067             | 31.67               |
| SC                  | 3246025             | 31.63               | 3215657             | 31.68               |
| ST                  | 1377011             | 13.42               | 1366312             | 13.47               |
| Total               | 10262591            |                     | 10146785            |                     |

*Data as on 31-10-2024.

Apps). Nyaya Bandhu Services are also available on UMANG Platform. Pro Bono Panel of advocates has been initiated in 23 High Courts at the State level. Pro  Bono  Clubs  have  been  started  in  109  Laws  Schools  to  instill  Pro  Bono culture in budding lawyers.

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