8/5/2015

GOVERNMENT OF MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE QUESTION NO 157 ANSWERED ON 07.03.2011

PENDING COURT CASES

157 SHRI NARESH GUJRAL

Will the Minister of LAW & JUSTICE be pleased to satate :­

(a) the number of cases pending with the High courts and the Supreme Court during the last three calendar years, State­wise; and

(b) the steps being taken to expedite these cases?` . ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE

(DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) and (b): A Statement is laid on. the Table of the House. Statement referred to in reply to parts (a) & (b) of the Raiva Sabha Starred Question No. 157 for 7.3.2011 regarding `Pending court cases`

(a): A statement is enclosed at Annexure.

(b): In order to facilitate expeditious disposal of cases in Courts, Government has taken a number of measures as mentioned below:

(i) The Government has accepted the recommendations of the Thirteenth Finance Commission to provide a grant of? 5000 crore to the States for improving the justice delivery system in the country over a five year period 2010­15. A grant of? 1000 crore has already been released to the States during the year 2010­11. With the help of these grants, the States can, inter­alia, set up morning / evening / shift / special magistrates` courts, appoint court managers, establish ADR centres and provide training to mediators / conciliators, organise more Lok Adalats to reduce pendencies. The grants also provide for training of judicial officers, strengthening of State Judicial Academies, training of public prosecutors and maintainance of heritage court buildings.

(ii) In order to modernise the judicial infrastructure, Government is implementing a Central Sector Scheme (E­Courts Project) for computerization of the District and Subordinate Courts in the country and upgradation of`ICT infrastructure in superior courts at an estimated cost of? 935 crore.

(iii) The Gram Nyayalayas Act, 2008 has been notified and brought into force w.e.f. 02 October, 2009 to provide for speedy justice to common man at grassroots level. Government provides financial assistance to the States for setting up and operation of Gram Nyayalayas. 144 Gram http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 1/2 8/5/2015 Nyayalayas have been notified out of which 47 are operational.

(iv) The Government has decided, in principle, to set up a `National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reforms` with the objective of reducing pendency of cases in courts.

(v) Fast Track Courts were set­up to expedite disposal of long pending sessions cases and the cases of undertrial prisoners. As per the information received, 32.06 lakh cases have been disposed of by these courts since inception.

(vi) To augment the resources of the State Governments for provision of infrastructure facilities for the judiciary, a Centrally Sponsored Scheme is being implemented since 1993­94 under which central assistance is provided to the States/UTs for construction of court buildings and residential accommodation for Judges/Judicial Officers. The outlay for this Scheme for the Eleventh Plan Period (2007­12) is ? 701.08 crore against which an amount of? 411.97 crore has been released to the State Governments during last three financial years.

http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 2/2 Annexure

STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PART (a) OF THE RAJYA SABHA

STARRED QUESTION NO. 157 7.3.2011

Number of cases pending in the Supreme Court and the High Courts

Sl. Name of the As on As on As on No. Courts 31.12.08 31.12.09 31.12.10 Supreme Court 49819 55791 54562 Sl. Name of the High As on As on As on No. Courts 31.12.08 31.12.09 31.06.10

1 Allahabad 911858 950864 969932 2 169214 187050 194000 3 Bombay 336080 338183 344477 4 Calcutta 300473 319846 329580 5 Chhattisgarh 66729 60418 57165 6 Delhi 70003 61277 61807 7 Gujarat 104814 99930 95350 8 Gauhati 62110 59336 60116 9 Himachal Pradesh 34638 51643 49582 10 Jammu and Kashmir 48827 55588 63520 11 Jharkhand 53364 55206 56295 12 109993 172302 197701 13 Kerala 110532 113426 117282 14 Madras 451496 431390 448178 15 Madhya Pradesh 183024 196921 209383 16 Orissa 240909 259918 267162 17 Patna 119863 128907 127745 18 Punjab & Haryana 252324 243782 242829 19 Rajasthan 229934 259187 272936 20 Sikkim 83 85 79 21 Uttarakhand 17822 31578 18612 Total 3874090 4076837 4183731

8/5/2015

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 160 ANSWERED ON 07.03.2011

REVAMPING JUDICIAL SYSTEM .

160 Shri K.N. Balagopal

Will the Minister of LAW & JUSTICE be pleased to satate :­

(a) whether Government is taking any steps to revamp the judicial system in the country; and

(b) whether Government proposes any new and transparent methods for the recruitment of judges and if so, the details thereof? ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE (DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) and (b): A Statement is laid on the Table of the House.

STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (a) AND (b) OF RAJYA SABHA STARRED QUESTION NO. 160

(a): The Government is taking various initiatives to improve justice delivery system in the country. These are as under:

(l)The Government has `in principle` approved setting up of National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reforms. The National Mission would help implementing the two major goals of

(i) increasing access by reducing delays and arrears in the system

(ii) enhancing accountability at all levels through structural changes and setting performance standards and facilitating enhancement of capacities for achieving such performance standards.

(2)With the objective of improving justice delivery. Thirteenth Finance Commission has recommended a grant of Rs. 5000 crore to be utilized over a period of five years up to 2010­2015. This grant is aimed at providing support to improve judicial outcomes, and is allocated for the initiatives such as (i) Increasing the number of court working hours using the existing infrastructure by holding morning / evening / shift courts; (ii) Enhancing support to Lok Adalats to reduce the pressure on regular courts; (iii) Providing additional funds to State Legal Services Authorities to enable them to enhance legal aid to the marginalized and empower them to access justice; (iv) Promoting the Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism to resolve part of the disputes http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 1/3 8/5/2015 outside the court system; (v) Enhancing capacity of judicial officers and public prosecutors through training programmes; (vi) Supporting creation or strengthening of a judicial academy in each State to facilitate such training; (vii) Creation of the post of Court Managers in every judicial district to assist the judiciary in their administrative functions and (viii) Maintenance of heritage court buildings.

(3)The Government is implementing a central sector scheme for computerization of the District and Subordinate Courts (e­Courts project) in the country and for upgradation of the ICT infrastructure of the Supreme Court and the High Courts, at a cost of Rs. 935 crore for the first phase which will connect 14,229 courts in the country including video conferencing facilities. In the subsequent phase, digitization, library management, e­filing and establishment of data warehouse are expected to take place. The Project output would be beneficial to both improving court process and rendering citizen centric services. Automation of case flow would cover case scrutiny, registration, court proceedings and electronic monitoring of all court­wise case pendency and performance assessment of Judges. In terms of citizen centric services, online availability of case status, copies of orders and judgments, cause list and eventually e­filing of cases will be available. This project will also achieve one of the important goals of the Vision Document 2009, namely, the creation of National Arrears Grid, with the last mile connectivity up to Taluqa courts. The complete coverage of the 14,249 courts in terms of hardware and software will be achieved by March 2014 and the largest number of courts (12,000) will be covered by March 2012. Re­engineering of the process in the courts is the ultimate aim for speeding justice delivery and this activity is also to start this year.

(4)Enactment of the Gram Nyayalayas Act, 2008 which provides for establishment of Gram Nyayalayas to improve access to justice to common man. Under the scheme, the Government provides non recurring grant for creation of infrastructure and also recurring grant on annual basis. Rs. 20.92 crore have been provided to the States so far under this scheme.

(5)A Centrally Sponsored Scheme for development of infrastructure facilities for the judiciary is being implemented since 1993­94 under which centra) assistance for construction of court buildings and residential quarters for judicial officers is released to augment the resources of the State Governments. The central grant is released with a rider that the State Governments would contribute at least the matching share. An amount of Rs. 412 crore has been released to the State Governments during the last three years. Central Grant for construction of High Court buildings is considered by the Planning Commission on 30:70 basis under Additional Central Assistance scheme.

(6)The Judicial Standards and Accountability Bill, 2010, which was introduced in the on 1st December, 2010, seeks to repeal the Judges (Inquiry) Act, 1968, while retaining its basic features and aims to achieve the objectives of creating a statutory mechanism for enquiring into individual complaints against Judges of the High Courts and the Supreme Court and recommending appropriate action, enabling declaration of assets and liabilities of Judges and laying down the judicial standards to be followed by the judges. All these measures will increase accountability of Judges of the High Courts and the Supreme Court thereby further strengthening the independence of the judiciary. The Bill has been referred to the Department Related Parliamentary Standing Committee.

(7)A Bill namely, The Constitution (One Hundred and Fourteenth Amendment) Bill, 2010 has been introduced in the Lok Sabha on 25th August, 2010 to increase the retirement age of Judges of the http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 2/3 8/5/2015 High Courts from 62 years to 65 years.

(b): The existing procedure for appointment of Judges of the Supreme Court and the High Courts is based on the Supreme Court Judgment dated October 6, 1993 in the case of Supreme Court Advocates on Record & Anr. Vs. Union of India, and the Advisory Opinion of the Supreme Court dated October 28, 1998. The procedure has been debated in various fora and there have been demands to change the same. However, there is, at present, no specific proposal to bring about any change in the present system of appointment of Judges in the Supreme Court and the High Courts.

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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 1170 ANSWERED ON 07.03.2011

CURB ON FRIVOLOUS PILS

1170 SHRI SHIVANAND TIWARI

Will the Minister of LAW & JUSTICE be pleased to satate :­

(a) whether it is a fact that a few organizations file PIL to get popularity while in reality they are not of much importance in many cases; and

(b) whether Government proposes to make any law to check the unwanted PILs by people so that the precious time of courts could be saved? ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW & JUSTICE

(DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) The matter.of entertaining or curbing PILs is within the domain of the Courts in which they are filed. The Hon`ble Supreme Court of India has, from time to time, provided certain guidelines in their various orders to check the misuse of Public Interest Litigation (PIL) by unscrupulous elements.

(b) : Does not arise.

http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 1/1 GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

RAJYA SABHA

UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1173

TO BE ANSWERED ON MONDAY, the 7.3.2011

Disposal of pending court cases

1173. SHRIMATI BIMLA KASHYAP SOOD:

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

(a) the number of posts of judges vacant in the Supreme Court as well as different High Courts in the country as on 31 December, 2010; (b) the number of cases filed in the courts as on the above date and whether there are enough judges to dispose of the pending cases; (c) if not, whether Government would consider to increase the number of judges; (d) whether Government has taken any other steps apart from these to expedite the disposal of cases; and (e) if so, the details thereof?

ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE

(DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) : A statement showing the vacancies of Judges in the Supreme Court and various High Courts as on 31

December, 2010 is annexed in Annexure. I.

(b) & (c) : A statement showing the pendency of court cases in the Supreme Court and various High Courts are annexed in

Annexure. II. The Judge strength of the High Courts is reviewed after every three years taking into account institution and disposal of court cases. The triennial reviews were conducted in 1999, 2003 and 2006. The Judge strength of some the High Courts were

also increased during the period upto 2009.

(d) & (e): In order to facilitate expeditious disposal of cases in Courts, Government has taken a number of measures as mentioned below:

1. The Government has ‘in principle’ approved setting up of National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reforms. The National Mission would help implementing the two major goals of

(i) increasing access by reducing delays and arrears in the system (ii) enhancing accountability at all levels through structural changes and setting performance standards and facilitating enhancement of capacities for achieving such performance standards.

2. With the objective of improving justice delivery, Thirteenth Finance Commission has recommended a grant of Rs. 5000 crore to be utilized over a period of five years up to 2010-2015. This grant is aimed at providing support to improve judicial outcomes, and is allocated for the initiatives such as (i) Increasing the number of court working hours using the existing infrastructure by holding morning / evening / shift courts; (ii) Enhancing support to Lok Adalats to reduce the pressure on regular courts; (iii) Providing additional funds to State Legal Services Authorities to enable them to enhance legal aid to the marginalized and empower them to access justice; (iv) Promoting the Alternate Dispute Resolution (ADR) mechanism to resolve part of the disputes outside the court system; (v) Enhancing capacity of judicial officers and public prosecutors through training programmes; (vi) Supporting creation or strengthening of a judicial academy in each State to facilitate such training; (vii) Creation of the post of Court Managers in every judicial district to assist the judiciary in their administrative functions and (viii) Maintenance of heritage court buildings.

3. The Government is implementing a central sector scheme for computerization of the District and Subordinate Courts (e-Courts project) in the country and for upgradation of the ICT infrastructure of the Supreme Court and the High Courts, at a cost of Rs. 935 crore for the first phase which will connect 14,229 courts in the country including video conferencing facilities. In the subsequent phase, digitization, library management, e-filing and establishment of data warehouse are expected to take place. The Project output would be beneficial to both improving court process and rendering citizen centric services. Automation of case flow would cover case scrutiny, registration, court proceedings and electronic monitoring of all court-wise case pendency and performance assessment of Judges. In terms of citizen centric services, online availability of case status, copies of orders and judgments, cause list and eventually e-filing of cases will be available. This project will also achieve one of the important goals of the Vision Document 2009, namely, the creation of National Arrears Grid, with the last mile connectivity up to Taluqa courts. The complete coverage of the 14,249 courts in terms of hardware and software will be achieved by March 2014 and the largest number of courts (12,000) will be covered by March 2012. Re-engineering of the process in the courts is the ultimate aim for speeding justice delivery and this activity is also to start this year.

4. Enactment of the Gram Nyayalayas Act, 2008 which provides for establishment of Gram Nyayalayas to improve access to justice to common man. Under the scheme, the Government provides non recurring grant for creation of infrastructure and also recurring grant on annual basis. Rs. 20.92 crore have been provided to the States so far under this scheme.

5. A Centrally Sponsored Scheme for development of infrastructure facilities for the judiciary is being implemented since 1993-94 under which central assistance for construction of court buildings and residential quarters for judicial officers is released to augment the resources of the State Governments. The central grant is released with a rider that the State Governments would contribute at least the matching share. An amount of Rs. 412 crore has been released to the State Governments during the last three years. Central Grant for construction of High Court buildings is considered by the Planning Commission on 30:70 basis under Additional Central Assistance scheme.

6. The age of retirement of Judges of the High Courts is proposed to be increased from 62 to 65 years, for which a constitution amendment Bill has been introduced in Parliament. This aims at retaining the Judges for three more years and avoiding consequent vacancies to address the issue of large pending cases in the High Courts.

*****

8/5/2015

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 1174 ANSWERED ON 07.03.2011

CONVERSION OF SUBORDINATE COURTS INTO FAST TRACK COURTS .

1174 Dr. T. Subbarami Reddy

Will the Minister of LAW & JUSTICE be pleased to satate :­

(a) whether the Central Government has recently decided to convert all the subordinate courts in the country into the fast track courts within the next few months;

(b) if so, the details thereof, including the cost likely to be incurred for this purpose;

(c) whether the infrastructure facilities in various subordinate courts would be upgraded to the level of fast track courts;

(d) if so, the details thereof; and

(e) by when these proposals are likely to be implemented? ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW & JUSTICE

(DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) No, Sir.

(b) Does not arise.

(c)to(e) Provision of infrastructure facilities in subordinate courts is within the purview of the respective State Governmems.In order to augment the resources of the State Governments, Government of India is implementing a scheme since 1993­94 for providing financial assistance to State Governments for development of infrastructure facilities for the judiciary. An amount ofRs 4n crore has been released to the State Governraents during the last three years.

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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 1178 ANSWERED ON 07.03.2011

RIGHT TO JUSTICE .

1178 Shri Rajeev Chandrasekhar

Will the Minister of LAW & JUSTICE be pleased to satate :­

(a) whether it is a fact that Government proposes to enact a legislation for Right to Justice to reduce the pendency of litigations;

(b) if so, the details thereof; and

(c) by when this is likely to be implemented? ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE

(DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) : No, Sir.

(b) and (c) : Do not arise.

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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 1179 ANSWERED ON 07.03.2011

ASSESSMENT OF IMPACT OF NEW LEGISLATIONS ON JUDICIARY .

1179 SHRI PARSHOTTAM KHODABHAI RUPALA

Will the Minister of LAW & JUSTICE be pleased to satate :­

(a) whether the Ministry is considering to conduct detailed studies to evaluate probable impact on our judicial system before making or implementing any law, as without a detailed study in this regard, it is creating huge burden on our judicial system and it may also be a reason for slow judicial proceeding and rising corruptions in our judicial system; and

(b) if so, the details thereof? ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE

(DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) and (b): The Government had set­up a Task Force for examining the feasibility of Judicial Impact Assessment in India as follow up action on the directions of the Hon`ble Supreme Court in the case of Salem Advocates Bar Association Vs. Union of India. The Task Force had presented its Report on 16.06.2008. The Report of the Task Force on Judicial Impact Assessment was forwarded to ail State Governments / High Courts for their views. Only few States / High Courts have sent their comments so far.

http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 1/1 GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1180

TO BE ANSWERED ON 07.03.2011

Setting up of High Courts

1180. DR. JANARDHAN WAGHMARE:

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

(a) whether Government is aware of the fact that some of the States have no High Courts;

(b) whether Government proposes to establish High Courts in such States; and

(c) if so, the details thereof?

ANSWER MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE (Dr. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) Yes, Sir.

(b) & (c) The State Governments have to provide necessary infrastructure for establishment of a High Court or its bench(s). The Government are processing the request for establishment of separate High Courts for the States of Manipur, Meghalaya and Tripura, who have provided necessary infrastructure.

***

8/5/2015

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 1181 ANSWERED ON 07.03.2011

IMPLEMENTATION OF GRAM NYAYALAYA ACT

1181 DR. JANARDHAN WAGHMARE

Will the Minister of LAW & JUSTICE be pleased to satate :­

(a) whether Government is aware that the Gram Nyayalaya Act was welcomed enthusiastically by the rural people;

(b) whether Government is also aware that States are not very keen on its implementation; and

(c) if so, what steps have been taken, so far, to implement this Act effectively? ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE

(DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) to (c): The Gram Nyayalayas Act, 2008 has been enacted to provide for the establishment of Gram Nyayalayas at the grass­root level for the purpose of providing access to justice to the citizens at their door steps and to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen. The Act has come into force on 2nd October, 2009 and enables the State Governments to establish Gram Nyayalayas. Around 5067 Gram Nyayalayas are expected to be established across the country once the Act is fully implemented. As informed by the State Governments, 144 Gram Nyayalayas have been notified so far. Out of which 47 Gram Nyayalayas have started functioning. As per Section 3(1) of the Gram Nyayalayas Act, 2008, it is for the State Governments, after consultation with their respective High Court, to establish Gram Nyayalayas in the State. The Central Government has requested the State Governments from time to time to set up more Gram Nyayalayas in consultation with their respective High Courts. To facilitate the States to set up Gram Nyayalayas, the Government provides assistance to the States towards (i) establishing the Gram Nyayalayas @ ? 18.00 lakhs per Gram Nyayalaya and (ii) meeting recurring costs Involved in operating these Gram Nyayalayas @ ? 3.20 lakhs per annum per Gram Nyayalaya for the first three years.

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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 1183 ANSWERED ON 07.03.2011

STATUS OF FAST TRACK COURTS .

1183 Shri Satyavrat Chaturvedi

Will the Minister of LAW & JUSTICE be pleased to satate :­

(a) whether it is a fact that fast track courts were set up to provide speedy justice to people of the country;

(b) whether 1734 fast track courts are functioning in the country at present;

(c) the number of such fast track courts out of these whose tenure is ending on 31 March, 2011;

(d) Government`s policy to extend their tenure and the reasons therefor;

(e) whether it is also a fact that Government has allocated fund for only 1562 fast track courts; and

(f) If so, the details thereof? ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW & JUSTICE

(DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) The Fast Track Courts were established for expeditious disposal of long pending Sessions cases and the cases involving undertrial prisoners. Fasl Track courts are set­up by the State Governments in consultation with the respective High Courts.

(b) As per the reports received, 1281 Fast Track Courts are functioning in the country.

(c)&(d) Tenure of Fast Track Courts is decided by the State Governments in consultation with the High Courts.

(e)&(f) The Eleventh Finance Commission recommended a scheme for creation of 1734 Fast Track Courts (FTCs) in the country for disposal of long pending Sessions and other cases. A provision of Rs. 502.90 crores was made as `special problem and upgradation grant` for judicial administration for a period of 5 years upto 31.03.2005 out of which a grant of Rs. 426.13 crore was released to the States. The Government accorded its approval for the continuation of 1562 Fast Track Courts that were operational as on 31.3.2005 for a further period of 5 years i.e. up to 31 March, 2010 with a provision of Rs. 509 crores out of which a grant of Rs. 370.82 crore was released to the .States upto 31­3­2010. This scheme has been extended for a further period of one year i.e. upto 31.03.2011 and http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 1/2 8/5/2015 a grant of Rs. 68.15 crore has been released so far during the year 2010­11.

http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 2/2 GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO.1184

TO BE ANSWERED ON 07.03.2011

Enhancing strength of judges

1184. SHRI RAASHID ALVI:

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

(a) whether Government is considering to enhance the strength of the judges in different High Courts and the Supreme Court; and

(b) if so, the details thereof?

ANSWER MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE (Dr. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) & (b): The Judge strength of the High Courts is reviewed after every three years. The triennial reviews were conducted in 1999, 2003 and 2006. The Judge strength of some of the High Courts were also increased during the period upto 2009. There is at present no proposal to enhance the Judge strength of the High Courts and the Supreme Court.

***

8/5/2015

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 1931 ANSWERED ON 14.03.2011

ASSISTANCE TO PUNJAB FOR GRAM NYAYALAYAS

1931 Sardar Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa

Will the Minister of LAW & JUSTICE be pleased to satate :­

(a) whether the State Government of Punjab has sought central assistance to meet recurring/non­ recurring expenditure for two Gram Nyayalayas;

(b) if so, the details in this regard; and

(c) by when the required assistance is likely to be released? ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE

(DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) to (c): Yes, Sir. The Government of Punjab has requested for release of a grant of ` 25.20 lakhs for meeting non­recurring expenditure and ` 6.40 lakhs for meeting recurring expenditure on two Gram Nyayalayas. As per the guidelines for release of Central assistance to States for the Gram Nyayalayas, Central assistance towards non­recurring expenditure is to be released after the State Government provides a copy of the notification establishing the Gram Nyayalayas. Central assistance towards recurring expenditure is to be released after the State Government informs that the Gram Nyayalayas established have commenced operation indicating the date from which such operation has commenced. Central assistance to the State Government may be considered as soon as the State Government provides the requisite information as per the guidelines.

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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 1933 ANSWERED ON 14.03.2011

APPOINTMENT OF COURT MANAGERS

1933 SHRI NANDI YELLAIAH

Will the Minister of LAW & JUSTICE be pleased to satate :­

(a) whether Government is contemplating to appoint the Court Managers in order to help judges in completing cases’ related primary formalities with a view to ensure early settlement of cases;

(b) if so, the details in this regard; and

(c) how and to what extent appointment of Court Managers would benefit the common man and reduce the heavy backlog of pending cases in various courts? ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE

(DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) to (c): On the recommendation of the Thirteenth Finance Commission, an amount of ` 300 crore has been allocated for employment of professionally qualified Court managers with a view to enhancing the efficiency of court management, and resultant improvement in case disposal. The professionally qualified Court Managers, with a MBA Degree/Diploma, will support the judges to perform their administrative duties thereby enabling the judges to devote more time to their judicial functions. The post of a Court Manager would be created in each judicial district to assist the Principal District and Session judges. Two posts of Court Manager may be created for each High Court, and one for each Bench of the High Court. Court Manager’s functions and responsibilities are as under:

(1) Policies and Standards ­ Based on applicable directives of superior courts, establish the performance standards applicable to the court and carryout an evaluation of the compliance of the court with such standards; identify deficiencies and deviations’, identify steps required to achieve compliance, maintain such an evaluation on a current basis through annual updates.

(2)Planning ­ Prepare and update annually a 5­year Court Development Plan (CDP) and monitor the implementation of the CDP and report to superior authorities on progress in consultation with all the stakeholders.

(3) Information and Statistics ­ Ensure that statistics on all aspects of the functioning of the Court are complied and reported accurately and promptly in accordance with systems established by the High Court. http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 1/2 8/5/2015

(4)Court Management and case Management ­ Ensure that the process and procedures of the court including for filing, scheduling, conduct of adjudication, access to information and documents and grievance redressal are fully compliant with the policies and standards established by the High Court for court and case management and that they safeguard quality, ensure efficiency and timelines, and minimize costs to litigants and to the State; and enhance access to justice.

(5)Responsiveness Management: Access to Justice; Legal Aid and User Friendliness ­ Ensure that the court meets standards established by the High Court on access to justice, legal aid and user friendliness.

(6)Core Systems Management ­ Ensure that the core system of the court such as documentation management; utilities management; infrastructure and facilities management; financial system management (audits, accounts, payments are established and function effectively.

(7) IT System Management ­ Ensure that the IT systems of the court comply with standards established by the High Court and are fully functional.

http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 2/2 GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE (DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE)

R A J Y A S A B H A UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1934

TH TO BE ANSWERED ON MONDAY, THE 14 MARCH, 2011

Fast Track Courts

1934. SHRIMATI T. RATNA BAI:

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

(a) what steps have been taken to increase the setting up of Fast Track Courts;

(b) the details of the Fast Track Courts that have been set up during the last two years, State-wise; and

(c) the details of the cases pending before the Fast Track Courts, State-wise?

A N S W E R MINISTER OF LAW & JUSTICE (DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY) (a) The Eleventh Finance Commission recommended a scheme for creation of 1734 Fast Track Courts (FTCs) in the country for disposal of long pending Sessions and other cases. A provision of Rs. 502.90 crores was made as “special problem and upgradation grant” for judicial administration for a period of 5 years upto 31.03.2005 out of which a grant of Rs. 426.13 crore was released to the States. The Government accorded its approval for the continuation of 1562 Fast Track Courts that were operational as on 31.3.2005 for a further period of 5 years i.e. up to 31st March, 2010 with a provision of Rs. 509 crores out of which a grant of Rs. 370.82 crore was released to the States upto 31-3-2010. This scheme has been extended for a further period of one year i.e. upto 31.03.2011 and a grant of Rs. 68.15 crore has been released so far during the year 2010-11. (b) Fast Track Courts are set up by the State Governments in consultation with the respective High Courts. Based on the reports received, a statement indicating the State-wise number of Fast Track Courts functional during December 2009 and December 2010 is enclosed as Annexure-I. (c) A statement indicating the number of cases pending before the Fast Track Courts, State-wise is enclosed as Annexure-II.

ANNEXURE-I STATEMENT REFERRED IN REPLY TO PART (b) OF THE RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1934 FOR 14/3/2011 REGARDING FAST TRACK COURTS

Number of Fast Track Courts Number of Fast functional Track Courts during functional Sl. December during No. Name of the States 2009 December 2010

1 2 3 4 1 ANDHRA PRADESH 108 108 2 ARUNACHAL PRADESH 3 3 3 ASSAM 20 20 4 BIHAR 179 179 5 CHHATTISGARH 28 25 6 GUJARAT 65 61 7 GOA 4 5 8 HARYANA 16 6 9 HIMACHAL PRADESH 9 9 10 JHARKHAND 41 39 11 KARNATAKA 92 87(Aug.10) 12 KERELA 38 38 13 MADHYA PRADESH 77 84(Sept.10) 14 MAHARASHTRA 111 67 15 MANIPUR 2 2 16 MEGHALAYA 3 3 17 MIZORAM 3 3 18 NAGALAND 2 2 19 ORISSA 35 35 20 PUNJAB 17 15 21 RAJASTHAN 83 83(June.10) 22 TAMIL NADU 49 49 23 TRIPURA 3 3 24 UTTARAKHAND 12 19 25 229 229(Aug.10) 26 WEST BENGAL 129 110 (Sept.10)

TOTAL 1358 1284

ANNEXURE-II STATEMENT REFERRED IN REPLY TO PART (c) OF THE RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1934 FOR 14/3/2011 REGARDING FAST TRACK COURTS

Number of cases Sl. pending in the Fast No. Name of the States Track Courts As on

1 2 3 4 1 ANDHRA PRADESH 35550 Dec.10 2 ARUNACHAL PRADESH 2486 Dec.10 3 ASSAM 15766 Dec.10 4 BIHAR 79088 Dec.10 5 CHHATTISGARH 16289 Dec.10 6 GUJARAT 107222 Dec.10 7 GOA 1125 Dec.10 8 HARYANA 4769 Dec.10 9 HIMACHAL PRADESH 6368 Dec.10 10 JHARKHAND 21575 Dec.10 11 KARNATAKA 34335 Aug.10 12 KERELA 14359 Dec.10 13 MADHYA PRADESH 49642 Sep.10 14 MAHARASHTRA 61014 Dec.10 15 MANIPUR 219 Dec.10 16 MEGHALAYA 202 Dec.10 17 MIZORAM 278 Dec.10 18 NAGALAND 150 Dec.10 19 ORISSA 5684 Dec.10 20 PUNJAB 12223 Dec.10 21 RAJASTHAN 27619 June, 10 22 TAMIL NADU 40621 Dec. 08 23 TRIPURA 245 Dec.10 24 UTTARAKHAND 8718 Dec.10 25 UTTAR PRADESH 73179 Aug.10 26 WEST BENGAL 31722 Sept.10

TOTAL 650417

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1936

TO BE ANSWERED ON 14.03.2011

High Court Bench at Thiruvananthapuram

1936. PROF. P.J. KURIEN:

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

(a) whether any proposal for setting up a Thiruvananthapuram Bench of the High Court of Kerala is under consideration of Government;

(b) if so, the details thereof; and

(c) the action taken or contemplated by Government and the expected time of setting up the Bench?

ANSWER MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE (Dr. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) : No, Sir.

(b) & (c) : Does not arise. GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. +1937

TO BE ANSWERED ON 14.03.2011

Disproportionate assets of former judges

+1937. : SHRI RASHEED MASOOD

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

(a) whether Government has received any complaints against some former judges and their relatives regarding disproportionate assets;

(b) if so, the details thereof; and

(c) the details of the action taken in this regard?

ANSWER MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE (Dr. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) to (c) Recently complaints from public have been received against former Chief Justice of

India Shri Justice K.G. Balakrishnan about disproportionate assets of his relatives.

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. +1938

TO BE ANSWERED ON 14.03.2011

Harassment of Madras High Court Judge

+1938. : SHRI RASHEED MASOOD

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

(a) whether the Ministry has received a letter from the Chief Justice of India, in which it was stated that a Union Minister was harassing a Madras High Court Judge;

(b) the date on which the said letter was received; and

(c) the name of the accused Minister, the action taken against him?

ANSWER MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE (Dr. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) to (c) The Supreme Court Registry has informed that the matter with which the correspondence is concerned is subjudice in Civil Appeal Nos. 1223-1224 of 2011 entitled

“R.K. Chandramohan Vs. Elephant G. Rajendran and Others” before the Supreme Court of

India on judicial side.

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 1939

TO BE ANSWERED ON 14.03.2011

Action on 230th Report of Law Commission

+1939. : SHRIMATI MAYA SINGH

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

(a) the details of action taken according to the 230th report prepared by the Law Commission in August, 2009;

(b) whether action has been taken against anybody in the judiciary for favouring relatives;

(c) whether any obstacles are being faced in complying with the above report of the Commission in order to bring transparency; and

(d) if so, the details thereof?

ANSWER MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE (Dr. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) to (d) : The 230th Report of the Law Commission considered the aspects of the selection and appointment of High Court Judges, increase in the number of judges, creation of new benches, age of retirement of judges, number of working days and vacation, work culture, speedy justice, justice at easy reach, integrity, virtue and ethics, governance, anti-corruption, access to justice, alternative dispute resolution and its advantages, pendency, use of technology and computerization of lower courts, reforms at village level etc.

The Report was forwarded to the Chief Justices of all High Courts to consider the recommendations for adoption.

***

8/5/2015

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 1942 ANSWERED ON 14.03.2011

VACANCIES OF JUDGES

1942 Shri T.K. Rangarajan Will the Minister of LAW & JUSTICE be pleased to satate :­

(a) whether it is a fact that number of vacancies remain unfilled in the High Courts and subordinate Courts across the country;

(b) if so, the details of the sanctioned strength of judges in High Courts, as well as subordinate courts;

(c) the reasons for the delay in filling up the vacancies; and

(d) the steps taken to clear the backlog? ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE

(DR. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a) & (b) : A statement showing the sanctioned strength and the vacancies of Judges in the various High Courts and subordinate courts are annexed in Annexure. I and II.

(c) & (d) : Pursuant to the Supreme Court Judgment of October 6, 1993 read with their Advisory Opinion of October 28, 1998, the entire process of initiation of proposal for appointment of a Judge of a High Court rests with the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court. The main reason for the large number of vacant posts is that the Government has not received sufficient proposals to fill up these vacant posts. The Government is periodically reminding the Chief Justices of the High Courts to initiate proposals in time for filling up the existing vacancies as well as the vacancies anticipated in next six months in the High Courts. Under Article 235 of the Constitution of India, the administrative control over the members of subordinate judiciary in the States vests with the concerned High Court and State Government. Thus, as regards the judge strength in the District and subordinate courts and filling them up is concerned, the responsibility vests with the respective State Governments and the High Courts.

Annexure.I Annexure referred to in reply to parts (a) & (b) of Rajya Sabha Unstarred Question No.1942 for answer on 14.03.2011

Sl.No.Name of the High Court Sanctioned strength Vacancy of judges as on 01.03.2011 as on 01.03.2011 1 Allahabad 160 95 2 Andhra Pradesh 49 13 3 Bombay 75 20 4 Calcutta 58 16 5 Chhattisgarh 18 6 6 Delhi 48 8 7 Gauhati 24 5 8 Gujarat 42 13 9 Himachal Pradesh 11 ‐ http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 1/3 8/5/2015 10 Jammu & Kashmir 14 4 11 Jharkhand 20 8 12 Karnataka 50 10 13 Kerala 38 8 14 Madhya Pradesh 43 9 15 Madras 60 11 16 Orissa 22 5 17 Patna 43 13 18 Punjab & Haryana 68 26 19 Rajasthan 40 18 20 Sikkim 3 1 21 Uttarakhand 9 2 Total 895 291

Annexure.II

Annexure referred to in reply to parts (a) & (b) of Rajya Sabha Unstarred Question No.1942 for answer on 14.03.2011

Sl.No. State/ Sanctioned Vacancies Union/Territory Strength of District & as on 30.06.2010 Subordinate Courts as on 30.06.2010

1 Uttar Pradesh 2186 272 2 Andhra Pradesh 930 148 3 Maharashtra 2087 280 4 Goa 49 7 5 Diu Daman & Dadra and Nagar Haveli 4 0 6 West Bengal and A&N Islands 933 154 7 Chhattisgarh 293 37 8 Delhi 605 170 9 Gujarat 1095 333 10 Assam 326 20 11 Meghalaya 10 2 12 Tripura 92 27 13 Manipur 33 2 14 Nagaland 28 5 15 Mizoram 40 9 16 Arunachal Pradesh 2 0 17 Himachal Pradesh 126 5 18 Jammu and Kashmir 207 43 19 Jharkhand 581 187 20 Karnataka 936 131 21 Kerala 436 17 22 Lakshadweep 3 0 23 Tamil Nadu 828 42 24 Puducherry 20 6 25 Madhya Pradesh 1288 176 26 Orissa 544 58 27 Bihar 1385 342 28 Punjab 410 116 29 Haryana 409 124 30 Chandigarh 20 0 31 Rajasthan 904 215 32 Sikkim 15 6 33 Uttarakhand 265 136

Total 17090 3070 http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 2/3 8/5/2015

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GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE RAJYA SABHA QUESTION NO 1943 ANSWERED ON 14.03.2011

PENDING CASES IN HIGH COURTS

1943 SHRI JAI PRAKASH NARAYAN SINGH

Will the Minister of LAW & JUSTICE be pleased to satate :­

(a) whether several lakh cases are pending for disposal at Allahabad and Kolkata High Courts as on 31st January, 2011;

(b) whether Government is aware that acute shortage of Judges in Kolkata, Mumbai, Patna and Ranchi High Courts is responsible for the huge backlog;

(c) whether it is a fact that in Allahabad High Court some cases are pending since 1981 and some for over 73 years, because there is shortage of 100 judges; and

(d) whether Government should have consulted the Chief Justice of India that for appointment of judges in High Court, persons below 57 years, having good practice, and absolute integrity be considered and a panel is drawn by the collegium of each High Court in the next 6 months? ANSWER

MINISTER OF LAW AND JUSTICE

(Dr. M. VEERAPPA MOILY)

(a): Yes, Sir.

(b) & (c): As on 28.2.2011, the sanctioned strength and vacancies in these High Courts are as under:

Name of the High Court Approved Strength Vacancy Allahabad 160 95 Bombay 75 20 Calcutta 58 16 Jharkhand 20 8 Patna 43 13 There are a number of reasons for the backlog of cases in High Courts. Vacancies of Judges has been identified as one of the reasons for the backlog.

(d): The Central Government has been periodically urging all the Chief Justices of the High Courts to accord utmost priority to filling up of vacant posts of judges and recommend names of suitable persons. http://164.100.47.4/newrsquestion/ShowQn.aspx 1/1