55 million cases pending in courts across the country

The central government informed the Rajya Sabha on Thursday that a total of over 54.9 million cases are pending in courts across the country. In a written reply, Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal stated that the backlog of cases is steadily increasing, from the Supreme Court to lower courts.

According to the latest data released by the government, 90,897 cases are pending in the Supreme Court, 6,363,406 cases in the country's 25 High Courts, and 48,457,343 cases in lower courts. These figures are as of December 8.

Meghwal explained that judicial delays are caused by several factors—the complexity of cases, the nature of evidence, cooperation between lawyers, investigating agencies, witnesses, and litigants, and the availability of adequate infrastructure and staff in courts.

On November 22, two days before taking oath, CJI Surya Kant had stated that the over 50 million pending cases in the country constituted the biggest challenge for the judiciary. He stated that addressing this backlog and promoting mediation to resolve disputes would be his two priorities.

Justice Surya Kant stated, "The number of pending cases in the Supreme Court has crossed 90,000. My first and biggest challenge is these pending cases. I won't delve into how this happened or who is responsible. It's possible that the listings have increased."

He cited the example of how one of his decisions resolved nearly 1,200 cases related to land acquisition disputes in Delhi. Justice Surya Kant said that the second issue is mediation. It is one of the easiest ways to resolve disputes and can truly be a game-changer.

Justice Kant will be sworn in as the 53rd CJI of the country on November 24th, replacing Justice BR Gavai. He was appointed CJI by President Draupadi Murmu on October 30th.

He will seek pendency reports from courts across the country.

He said he will also seek detailed pendency reports from the High Court and trial courts across the country. The High Court will be asked about pending cases that will be decided by a larger Constitutional Bench of the Supreme Court.

When asked about the increasing pollution in Delhi-NCR, he said that he takes a morning walk for approximately 50 minutes every day and does not give up this habit, regardless of the weather.

Justice Surya Kant said that caution regarding AI requires understanding its ills along with solutions. Artificial intelligence can provide significant solutions for judicial institutions, but its use must be expanded only after understanding its risks.