Judiciary is overburdened, focusing on filling up vacancies of judges: N V Ramana

Speaking at the inaugural event of the Telangana State Judicial Officer Conference, the CJI said that he does not want to even a single vacancy in the Supreme Court, High Court, and the district judiciary. He also said that he wants to strengthen the judicial system. He said that a survey conducted by the Supreme Court Registry in different parts of the country found that courts are having inadequate infrastructure. The CJI urged the Centre to address the issue.

Hyderabad(Telangana): Chief Justice of India NV Ramanna on Friday said that the judiciary is overburdened in the country adding that access to justice can only be possible when there is an adequate number of courts and related infrastructure in the country. "Our judiciary is overburdened. It is an admitted fact and there is no dispute that pendency has increased in courts and the reasons are in hundreds. In these circumstances, the feeling is that once you go to court. How many years will it take for the result? It's a big question mark. With the hierarchy of the appeal system in the country, it takes more time," the CJI said.

Speaking at the inaugural event of the Telangana State Judicial Officer Conference, the CJI said that he does not want to even a single vacancy in the Supreme Court, High Court, and the district judiciary. He also said that he wants to strengthen the judicial system. He said that a survey conducted by the Supreme Court Registry in different parts of the country found that courts are having inadequate infrastructure. The CJI urged the Centre to address the issue.

The CJI urged judges to overcome the fear of the pandemic and spend extra time in courts. "Please make sincere efforts to spend extra time in courts, beyond regular court hours," he said. He also said that the judges would play a key role to address the issue of pending cases. Suggesting that judges should use alternate methods of dispute resolution whenever possible, the CJI said that "targeted action and effective case management can make a big difference."

Urging judicial officers to perform their duties without any fear, the CJI said that he was aware of the increasing instances of physical assault and was doing his best to prevent such incidents. The CJI said that judges play a highly significant role in the Constitutional scheme, he urged them to apply their minds independently. "Apply your mind independently to the materials presented before you. For instance, the requirements of the criminal procedure code are not mere formalities. They are all important checks on executive excesses and represent substantive rights of the accused," he said.

"You must keep yourself updated. Learning in this field never stops. Only when you are aware of changing law and precedents, you will be able to use the same to cases before you and ensure justice," he added. Jutice Ramanna said that after taking over as CJI, he cleared the file pending for two years to increase the number of judges of the Telangana High Court from 24 to 42. Praising Telangana Chief Minister KCR for sanctioning 4,320 posts in the judiciary, the CJI said that this was no small achievement at a time when governments were doing away with government jobs and recruiting people on a contract basis. Thanking the CJI, the Chief Minister KCR said that the State government will construct residential quarters for all 42 judges of the High Court on about 42 acres of land in Durgam Cheruvu in the Financial District. KCR requested the CJI to lay its foundation stone.