IT is classic case of David vs Goliath. A handful of judges trying to work their way through a mountain of cases! The success depends not only on the arithmetic, but also on commitment and motivation. The number of judges in India is abysmally less as a ratio to its population. The judge-population ratio in India, as of today, is 20 judges per 10 lakh people which is the lowest in the world. In its 120th report of 1987, the Law Commission had stated that for every 10 lakh of population, 50 judges are required. It held that this will help reduce pendency. So, if the retirement age of judges is increased will it help solve the problem?
Justice Sudhir Aggarwal, former judge, Allahabad High Court, held that there is no one-to-one relationship between case disposal rates and the number of judges. He said: “According to the National Judicial Data Grid figures, 4 crore 10 lakh cases are pending in district courts of the country. More than one crore cases are pending in the Uttar Pradesh district courts itself. In the High Courts, 59 lakh cases are pending. The Allahabad High Court alone has 10 lakh 32 thousand cases which are yet to be cleared. By only increasing the judges' retirement age, pendency can't be reduced as there are other factors as well. If the retirement age is increased then after a certain period, with delayed appointments, the situation will be back to square one. Every year, a white paper is needed and competent judges are required.”
Justice MN Venkatachaliah, former chief justice of India, has also made his mark by managing the pendency problem. During his term of seven years at the Supreme Court, he wrote about 90 judgments and was a part of 482 benches. Throughout his tenure, he was committed to reducing the pendency of cases. He is credited for bringing down the pendency to 19,000 in his tenure.
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