New Delhi: As of November 30, a total of 5.15 crore cases remain pending in Indian courts, according to the National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG). This includes 82,171 cases in the Supreme Court, 57.82 lakh in High Courts and 4.56 crore in district and subordinate courts. This information was revealed by the Minister of State (MoS) (Independent Charge) for Law and Justice, Arjun Ram Meghwal.
He informed the Parliament on Thursday, December 12 that the pendency of cases in courts can be attributed to several factors, which include the availability of physical infrastructure and supporting court staff, the complexity of facts involved, the nature of evidence, the cooperation of stakeholders like the bar, investigation agencies, witnesses, and litigants, and the proper application of rules and procedures.
“Other factors that lead to delay in disposal of cases include lack of prescribed timeframe by respective courts for disposal of various kinds of cases, frequent adjournments, and lack of adequate arrangement to monitor, track, and bunch cases for hearing,” the MoS said.
Judge-population ratio
The MoS told the House that based on the population as per the Census 2011, which was 1210.19 million, and as per available information regarding the sanctioned strength of judges in the Supreme Court, High Courts, and District and Subordinate Courts in the year 2024, the judge-population ratio in the country works out to be approximately 21 judges per million population.
Giving details of the appointment of judges in High Courts, MoS Meghwal said “In 2024, the number of fresh appointments was 34; in 2023 it was 110; in 2022 it was 165; in 2021 it was 120; in 2020 it was 66; and in 2019 it was 81.”
“The number of judges appointed to the Supreme Court in 2024 was four; in 2023, it was 14; in 2022, it was three; in 2021, it was nine; and in 2019, it was 10. There was no appointment in 2020,” said the MoS.
(With inputs from IANS)
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