IN THE SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

CIVIL ORIGINAL JURISDICTION

WRIT PETITION (CIVIL) NO ______OF 2019

(UNDER ARTICLE 32 OF THE CONSTITUTION OF INDIA)

IN THE MATTER OF:

VARUNENDRA PANDEY …PETITIONER

VERSES

1. UNION OF INDIA ...RESPONDENTS

Through the Secretary,
Ministry of Law and Justice,
Shashtri Bhawan, New Delhi-110001,

2. SUPREME COURT OF INDIA

Through the Secretary General
Tilak Marg, New Delhi-110201

To,

The Honorable Chief Justice of India and his Lordship’s Companion Justice of
the Supreme Court of India.

THE MOST RESPECTFULLY SHOWETH AS UNDER:

1. Petitioner is filing this writ petition civil as a PIL seeking a writ, order or
directions to reduce the pendency of cases by cutting short vacations of the judges
 of the supreme court and high court judges and adopt the Resolution dated
25.10.2009, adopted at the National Consultation for Strengthening the Judiciary
towards Reducing Pendency and Delays; and to implement Law Commission’s
Report No. 221, 230 and 245.

2. Petitioner has no personal interests, individual gain, private motive or oblique

reasons in filing this writ petition. It is not guided for gain of any other
individual person, institution or body. There is no motive other than the
interest of children, who are future citizens of this country.

3. There is no civil, criminal or revenue litigation, involving petitioner, which has

or could have legal nexus, with the issue involved in this petition. This petition
is totally bona-fide.

4. There is no requirement to move concerned authority for relief sought in this

petition. There is no other remedy available except approaching to this Hon’ble
Court by way of this petition seeking a mandamus for implementation of
Resolution dated 25.10.2009 and NCRWC and Law Commission’s
recommendations on judicial reform.

5. The Petitioner herein seeks to highlight the violation of the fundamental rights
of the litigants guaranteed and protected under Articles 14 and 21 of the
Constitution when their cases witness staggering delays in disposal across all
levels. It is humbly submitted that the maxim “justice delayed is justice denied”
is visibly felt in our country due to the enormous backlog of cases and has
acquired uncontrollable proportion, even though this Hon’ble Court has read
Article 21 of the Constitution to include the right to a speedy trial. The principle
 of “justice for all” as is envisioned in the Preamble of our Constitution
necessarily requires access to the highest level of justice to every common
citizen.

6. Nearly seven decades after independence, the system of long vacations for
courts – a practice introduced by the British in India to allow their judges
ample time to travel home and back – continues. Interestingly, the courts are
unaware of how and when the system actually began.

7. Rising pendency at a time when the situation is almost getting out of hand with
the backlog touching 3.3 crore cases. While 2.84 crore cases are pending in the
subordinate courts, the backlog clogging the High Courts and Supreme Court
(SC) is 43 lakh and 57,987 cases, respectively. According to National Judicial
Data Grid (NJDG), the five states which account for the highest pendency are
Uttar Pradesh (61.58 lakh), Maharashtra (33.22 lakh), West Bengal (17.59
lakh), Bihar (16.58 lakh) and Gujarat (16.45 lakh).

8. Large number of under trials languishes in jails across the country as they don't
get bail and many even spend more than their sentence once they are
convicted.

9. Of all the pending cases, 60% are more than two years old, while 40% are more
than five year old. In the Supreme Court, more than 30% of pending cases are
more than five years old.

10. In the Allahabad High Court, 15% of the appeals have been pending since
1980s, while in the MP High Court, 70,000 have mounted since 1994.
11. As per latest data on the National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG), as on December 27,
2018, there are 49,83,236 pending cases in the High Courts of the country and
2,93,05,114 cases pending before the lower courts.

12. Meanwhile, the combined pendency of cases before the lower courts in Punjab
and Haryana states has reached around one million. As of December 27, 2018, the
pendency is 13,31,244 cases. In Punjab, there are 6,01,431 pending cases before the
lower courts- 2,57,005 civil and 3,44,426 criminal. In Haryana, the data says there
are 7,29,813 pending cases- 2,80,863 civil and 4,48,950 criminal.

13. Moreover, the highest court for the two states, Punjab and Haryana High Court,
has 3,93,953 pending cases, this clearly shows the burden on the lower judiciary in
the two states. Among the High Courts, Rajasthan has the highest pendency with
7,41,358 lakh cases as on Thursday, followed by Allahabad HC with 7,25,143 and
Bombay with 4,64,074. The highest number of pending criminal cases is in
Allahabad High Court (3,18,774), followed by Rajasthan HC (2,23,646) and Madhya
Pradesh (1,25,253). Meghalaya has the lowest number of criminal cases pending
(46) before the HC.

14. The problem of delay in disposal of case is not a new problem in India and has
been in existence since a long time. However, it has now acquired terrific
proportions. On the one hand, it has put the judicial system under strain and on
the other hand, it has shaken the confidence of the people also. All the delay
and lack of accountability and half baked schemes amount to a daily mockery of
the fundamental right to speedy trial.
15. Court vacations, a British era practice, be cut short in order to reduce the ever-
mounting pendency of cases which at present stood at a whopping 3.3 crore
cases across the country. At present, the SC has 193 working days annually, high
courts 210 days and trial courts 245 days a year. However, out of 13 courts in SC,
one of them sits during vacations to hear urgent cases. Even the apex court rules
specify that there has to be a minimum of 225 working days.

16. When there are nearly 60,000 cases pending in SC, it has five vacations in its
annual calendar. Summer break of 45 days, winter break of 15 days and Holi
vacation of one week. It closes for five days each for Dussehra and Diwali.

17. Right to speedy justice is a fundamental right guaranteed under Article 21 of

the Constitution There is a need to reduce the vacations of judges and they
should sit for the whole day so that the maximum number of cases can be
disposed of. The system of vacations is legacy of the colonial rule. The situation
as the country is facing demands that courts should do away with such long
vacations. Every court, including apex court, must function at least six hours
per day and 225 days per year.

18. Even seven decades after independence, the system of long vacations for
courts - a practice introduced by the British in India to allow their judges ample
time to travel home and back - continues.

19. The summer vacation system is invariably ascribed to a British colonial legacy,
avoiding the hot Indian summer. Some time ago, there was an RTI application
addressed to the Supreme Court, asking about the antecedents of the summer
 vacation. Since the Supreme Court came into existence in 1950, the Central
Public Information Officer (CPIO) responded that they had no information about
the antecedents. I suspect one should hunt for antecedents in the rules of the
Federal Court of India or the Government of India Act of 1935.

20. Justice is not something which can be captured and captivated, in rigid
formulae once for all and immutability and immortality cannot be attributed to
the said principles. It is a perpetual process, a complex and shifting balance
between many oscillating factors. The quest for the justice has been as
challenging as the quest for the holy grave and as elusive as an angelic glow. The
need of the hour is to endeavour to create justice, which is perceivable,
permeable, and productive of values and peace in the society. The stream of
justice should not be hindered or polluted by hostility of witnesses. Time has
come to work for it.

21. Revamping of the legal education is another aspect, which needs to be stressed
because the real answer for most legal reform lies in reforming the legal
education in the country, which will ultimately lead to the improvement of the
overall situation in the judiciary. The quality of legal education imparted to a
student or a prospective advocate plays an important role in the sense that it is
at that stage he should be motivated to perceive the profession as the one
essentially meant for social and public good and that he should do everything at
his command for the speedy and proper disposal of cases without being unduly
influenced by his own individual interest only. Although in recent years, large
numbers of law schools have mushroomed in almost every State, but the quality
of legal education imparted in these schools is pathetic and it does not match
 upto the challenges of the profession. Some reforms aimed at improving the
legal education have been undertaken recently in the country, but much remains
to be done.

GROUNDS AND SUGGESTIONS

In addition to the above, additional grounds and suggestions are as thus:

That In order to highlight the magnitude of the problem sought to be raised in

the instant Petition, the Petitioner seeks to place before this Hon’ble Court
certain statistics which would establish the level of pendency as occurring, as
on 1.1.2016.

Pendency in the Supreme Court 5,90,211

Cases more than five years old (approx) 12,000
Total Pendency in High Courts 40,05,704,
Pendency in subordinate courts 2,71,56,020,
Cases more than five years old 81,16,
Total Pendency in all Courts 3,11,61,724

Although this data is the old data, but it shows the seriousness of the problem.
Therefore, this Hon’ble Court may direct the government to implement the
Resolution dated 25.10.2009 urgently.

22. That it is the humble submission of the Petitioner herein that judicial
reform is the ability to address various changes resulting from
Internationalization, political / economic transformation, new technologies
etc. Initiating such reforms would require a consistent and sustained
 approach to ensure stability, continuity and continuation of the proper and
consistent functioning of the judiciary. It is further humbly submitted that the
opportunity to confront such challenges would aptly demonstrate the
dynamism of the judiciary to adopt and accept changes.

23. This is a colonial practice and should be stopped as we no longer have English
judges who need to visit their homeland for a long period, given the backlog of
cases and the severe delays, courts should be working longer hours (and not
lesser) to meet the needs of the country rather than continue with the practice of
long vacations

24. While the legislature does take long breaks, it does not have a daily
transactional role like the judiciary. Further, no other working set of people,
including doctors who can be compared to judges and lawyers professionally,
take such a long break in our country. Even if we look at this issue from a strict
systemic perspective, a large number of non-working days cannot be justified
when litigants have to wait for years together to get relief from the courts. The
judiciary cannot view their holidays as an entitlement when the system has
become dysfunctional.

25. In my view, there is really no overwhelming reason why the judiciary,

particularly the High Courts and the Supreme Court should continue to take long
vacations. Judges are no different from other professionals or working people
when it comes to working hard. There is no special case to be made for a long
break when compared to others in society who have an equally important role.

26. A better approach is to fix working conditions of the judge by determining their
optimal workload each day and the total number of cases a judge can deal with
 at any given point of time so as to ensure that a judge is able to function properly
and efficiently.

27. The answer is also not to shut down courts en masse for a couple of months a
year. Taking these long breaks is clearly not helping the system in disposing
cases. Whether it is helping judges’ function better is an open question as we
have no contrasting scenario to compare the present practice with.

28. As a society, we cannot have a dysfunctional judiciary. We need to do all we can

to fix its working, including communicating with citizens that the institution
cares for the interests of the citizens. Taking a long break when no other
working institution does so does not give the message of an institution that is
interested in reforming itself for the benefit of citizens. Rather, it indicates that
the courts do not care for the citizens, but care for themselves.

29. We need to evolve a practice where the courts continue to function throughout
the year, but individual judges get sufficient time off to ensure that they do not
suffer a burnout. A likely solution is to ensure that vacations are taken in
rotation so that a majority of judges are functioning at any given point during
the year. This is also only possible if all the vacancies are filled regularly and
promptly.

30. We need to ensure that the judiciary is not seen as an institution that is residing
in an ivory tower divorced from the realities of the country. The need of the hour
is an efficient judiciary that is not only committed to meet the needs and
interests of the citizens, but also communicates this commitment by modifying
their practices to suit the needs of the country.
31. There is a need to enact a comprehensive law on the Speedy Trial on the lines
of 'The Speedy Trial Act, 1974' as prevalent in United States of America and the
same should apply to the both citizens and non-citizens. As there is no 'Speedy
Trial Act' in India, justice has not always moved swiftly in India. The existing
laws are not sufficient for Right to Speedy Trial under Justice System in India.
Therefore, 'The Speedy trial Act' is urgently needed. The Speedy Trial Act in
India will to serve two purposes. Firstly, to prevent accused from languishing in
jail for an indefinite period before trial. Pre-trial incarceration is a deprivation of
liberty no less serious than post conviction imprisonment. In some cases pretrial
incarceration may be more serious because public scrutiny is often heightened,
employment is commonly interrupted, financial resources are diminished,
family relations are strained, and innocent persons are forced to suffer
prolonged injury to reputation. Secondly, to ensure an accused's right to a fair
trial. The longer the commencement of trial is postponed, the more likely it is
that witnesses will disappear, memories will fade, and evidence will be lost or
destroyed.

32. There is a need to reduce the vacations of Judges and Subordinate staff i.e.
summer vacation, winter vacation, puja vacation etc. and the judges should sit
for the whole day so that the maximum number of cases can be disposed of. The
system of vacations is legacy of the colonial rule. The situation as the country is
facing demand that courts should do away with such long vacations. Every Court
including Apex Court must function at least six hours per days and 225 days per
year.
33. There should be a comprehensive regular training and orientation programmes
for all judicial officers and Court administration. A good training programme
serves the futuristic need of the system by improving the potential to optimum
level. The training needs to include Court and Case Management besides
methods to improve their skills in hearing cases, taking decisions and writing
judgments.

34. Judiciary is to be held responsible for the mounting arrears of the cases that are
increasing day by day because of the lackm of an effective machinery to check
the backlog of cases. Above all these the problem that is faced by the judiciary is
whooping amount of vacations that judges of higher as well as subordinate
courts get. Long vacations have never made things easier for the judiciary and
have always been a prime reason why judiciary carries such backlog. Today
cutting shot the vacations of the judges is the need of the hour as “ justice
delayed is Justice denied”. If the step is not taken as soon as possible the result
must be nothing but chaotic and catastrophic as judiciary is the only body that
enjoys independence status and is biggest recipient of faith of people of the
country.
 PRAYER

Keeping in view the above stated facts and appalling effects of the long pendency of
cases due to the unnecessary vacations enjoyed by the judges, it is respectfully
prayed that this Hon’ble Court may be pleased to issue a writ, order or direction, in
the nature of mandamus to:

a) Direct the Ministry of Law to take appropriate steps to reduce the pendency of
cases from in line with the Resolution dated 25.10.2009, namely ‘National
Consultation for Strengthening the Judiciary towards Reducing Pendency and
Delays’; (Appendix, Page 50)

b) Direct the Ministry of Law to take appropriate steps to implement the

recommendations of the Law Commission’s Report No. 230 and to issue the wriit
of mandamus to protect the rights of the people under article 14 and 21 that
guarantees access to justice to everyone and the justice would be speedy

c) direct the Secretary General to plan Annual Calendar in a way so that the
Courts function at least 225 days per year and 6 hours per day as suggested by
Law Commission Report No-230.

Any other relief or order which Your Lordship may deem fit to pass.

AND FOR THIS ACT OF KINDNESS, THE PETITIONER SHALL REMAIN

OBLIGED AS IN DUTY BOUND.

Date: 23rd March, 2019

Sector 22, NOIDA, Uttar Pradesh - 201301
 ORIGINAL JURISDICTION

CIVIL WRIT PETITION NO.______ OF 2019

(Under Article 32 of the Constitution of India)

IN THE MATTER OF PUBLIC INTEREST LITIGATION

VARUNENDRA PANDEY …PETITIONER

VERSES

UNION OF INDIA & ORS …RESPONDENTS

AFFIDAVIT

The above named deponent, solemnly affirmed and state on oath as

under :
1. That I am the petitioner in the above mentioned writ petition and
am fully
conversant with the facts disposed to in the writ petition.
2. No matter has been concealed and no part is false.

DEPONENT
 VERIFICATION

I the above named deponent do hereby verify on oath that the contents of
the affidavit above are true to my knowledge and nothing material has been
concealed or falsely stated. Verified at this day of 1st April, 2019.

DEPONENT