'Judges shortage delaying justice'

Hyderabad: Chief Justice of India Justice NV Ramana on Friday said that the judiciary is overburdened, and access to justice would be possible only when sufficient number of courts as well as infrastructure was in place. He said that he was giving priority to fill up the vacancies of judges and improving infrastructure to deal with the backlog of cases.

Addressing the inaugural session of the two-day conference of judicial officers of Telangana on Friday, Chief Justice Ramana said, "Our judiciary is overburdened. It is an admitted fact and there is no dispute that pendency has increased in courts and the reasons are hundreds. There is a feeling that it would take years to get the result. With the hierarchy of the appeal system in the country, it takes more time," he observed.

That's why, he said he felt it necessary to appoint as many judges as possible. "I don't want to keep even one vacancy in high courts or Supreme Court or district judiciary and also strengthen the system," he added.

He further said a detailed survey by the Supreme Court registry in different parts of the country found that infrastructure in courts is very inadequate and he requested the Centre to strengthen it.

The CJI urged the judges to come out of fear of pandemic. "Please make sincere efforts to spend extra time in courts, beyond regular court hours," he said and exuded confidence that the judges would do their bit to deal with the backlog.

He told them without improving the internal efficacy of the system, the goal can't be achieved.

"Targeted action and effective case management can make a big difference," he said and advised judges to use alternate dispute resolution methods whenever possible. The CJI exhorted judicial officers to perform their judicial duties without any fear.

"I am aware of the increasing physical attacks on judges. I am doing my utmost to prevent such occurrences. Directions were issued to improve security of judicial officers both inside and outside courts," he said. He requested judicial officers to create a congenial environment for litigants who would be under a lot of stress.

It is important to project the human face of the judiciary whenever you have scope for invoking your discretion. You must sensitise yourself to different vulnerabilities of the parties like minors, women, persons belonging to weaker sections of society, persons with disabilities etc.

They might all have different requirements. Treat everyone with respect."

He told the judges that the role they play is highly significant in the Constitutional scheme. "Apply your mind independently on the materials presented before you. For instance, the requirements of criminal procedure code are not mere formalities. They are all important checks on executive excesses and represent substantive rights of the accused," he said.

He was all in praise for Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao for sanctioning 4,320 posts in the judiciary.