Inconsistent recruitment of judges in many states has led to delays in decisions, overcrowding of prisons and an increase in the number of undertrials.
Inconsistent recruitment of judges in many states has led to delays in decisions, overcrowding of prisons and an increase in the number of undertrials.
more than Four crore cases pending in lower courts of India (District and Taluk Courts), of which about 25% are pending for more than five years. More than half of India’s pending cases were filed in lower courts in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, Bihar and West Bengal. The huge increase in pending cases is a demand and supply issue. In some states, the number of cases registered per capita has increased in recent years, and so the demand for justice is high. In other states, due to relatively high judicial vacancies, the supply of justice is poor, with cases getting delayed. For example, in Maharashtra, Kerala, Delhi, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh, although the number of pending cases per lakh population is over 4,500, less than 25% of those cases are pending for more than five years – mostly a demand side issue. . In Bihar and West Bengal, the number of pending cases per capita is lower than the national average, but more than 40% of them are pending for more than 5 years – a supply-side issue. In states like UP and Odisha, both these figures are above India’s average – a demand- and supply-side issue. Judicial vacancies as part of the sanctioned strength in lower courts are 20% or more in 19 states/UTs only per one lakh people, in some states like Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Bihar and Telangana, due to inconsistent recruitment is a judge. , Due to persistent delays, the number of undertrials as a share of total prisoners has reached 76 per cent in 2020. And there are prisons, especially in the north. Crowd with occupancy rates Up to 177% in Uttar Pradesh.
hanging fire
The map shows the share of cases pending in the lower courts of India for more than five years. Out of the total 4.18 crore cases, around 1.08 crore cases (25%) are pending for more than five years.
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state wise share
The tree-map shows the number of pending cases in different states. With over one crore cases, UP has the highest number of pending cases, of which 14% are pending for more than 10 years
Deposit
The map shows the number of pending cases per one lakh population in different states/UTs. Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Delhi and Haryana top the list.
delay and length
The chart shows the number of pending cases per 1 lakh population against the share of cases pending for more than five years in different states/UTs, though the number of cases per capita is higher for Kerala, Delhi, Haryana and Himachal , their pendency% is less than 25%. UP and Odisha have higher per capita cases and share of cases pending for more than five years
Court Vacancies
The scatter-plot shows the total vacancies of judges in lower courts (horizontal axis) and vacancies as part of the total sanctioned strength (vertical axis) as of 2020. For example, in Uttar Pradesh, there were around 1,000 judicial vacancies. The share of vacancies in lower courts and in the total sanctioned number was about 30%, the highest in the country
availability of judges
Map shows the number of residents per subordinate court judge in 2018-19
overcrowded prisons
The map shows the occupancy rate (%) of prisons in 2020. The occupancy rate was more than 100% in 17 states/UTs with Uttar Pradesh (177%) at the top of the list.
Pending Shares
The chart shows undertrial prisoners as a share of the total number of prisoners. The share of undertrials has increased significantly over the years
Source: Statsofindia.in, NCRB, NZDG
*Pratap Vardhan runs Statsofindia.in
Read also: A wish list for reforming India’s higher judiciary