Beyond Verdicts: Reimagining India's Judiciary for a Just Future 

Tanya Gupta

Faculty of Law, Banaras Hindu University

Introduction:

Democracy governance that is often referred to as people’s government has been divided into three key branches:

●      The Legislature

●      The Executive

●      The Judiciary

While all three branches are equally important for better functioning, The Judiciary acts as the backbone of the system as it ensures that the law passed has truly been implemented and followed and ensures it is based on legalities and is based on a law that is moral upholding the principle of natural law.

The judiciary brings out all the reforms necessary for keeping a stable equilibrium removing all the dysfunction from the system.

These branches have been created to ensure a perfect federal system that arises from the Govt of India Act 1935[1] and is important for ensuring the checks and balances in the system making a system that is legitimate, transparent, and accountable to and for the citizens. 

What can we do to reimagine the judiciary?

Judicial reform is one such way of making changes in the system chosen by people to ensure they continue to have faith in the system. If justice is ensured but it is delayed, then in a way the justice provided becomes denied.

Bringing Reforms is not just about fixing what is broken it is about preventing something from reaching a stage to get broken and to ensure a better equilibrium in the society.

As society changes with each passing time, The reforms that are made also need to be customized according to the people’s customs, diversity, the country’s customs, rules, and regulations. If laws are not made in certain social orders, then they will not prevail for long in society.

Judicial Reforms ensure the better functioning of the system; by bringing these reforms we could strengthen and simplify the legal procedures. 

Challenges Facing the Indian Judiciary:

There are multiple challenges faced by the Indian judiciary which require transformation for better functioning of the system that is set up for the betterment of people, The challenges faced are mentioned below:

●      Case Backlogs and Delays

●      Judicial Vacancies

●      Inadequate Infrastructure

●      Technological Gaps

●      Limited Access to Justice

●      Lack of Transparency and Accountability

By tackling these issues, India can build a judiciary that is efficient and accessible to all its citizens, though only doing this won’t solve the problem. These are some problems we can bring out by ensuring that justice is delivered fairly and on time. 

Reimagining India's Judiciary for a Just Future

The judiciary stands out as the signifying backbone of the nation; of a country that promotes democracy as one of the branches to ensure proper checks and balances in the system.

In Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala,[2] this landmark case defined the "basic structure" of the Indian Constitution, meaning certain essential features cannot be altered by Parliament, strengthening judicial review power.

If the judiciary is sovereign and must ensure that laws made by parliament are constitutional and not void, then it is very important to note its transparency and legitimacy and the accountability it holds toward the citizens of the nation.

While reimagining the judicial system, we face a tremendous number of problems in our judicial system with overburdening the courts leading to violation of our rights to have justice ensured with proper substantive and proper laws.  We might add the concept of video conferencing in the system to reduce the time that is taken by litigants to travel to court and ensure a quick reparation to the person.

In most cases while there is to be a proceeding, the petitioner and the respondent have to report in the courtroom by leaving their work for a while also causing damage on the other end, and even in that situation they go back without having any proceeding done as the number of the case could not reach or because the judge or the advocate is not present, The next date for the proceeding is given, and it further repeats leading to delay in pronouncement of the case.

Judges and advocates must be attentive regarding this problem and, in certain circumstances, may move to provide for an ex-parte order.[3]

As in the Consumer Protection Act of 2019,[4] a three-tier redressal agency has been set up to ensure quick justice rather than follow a hectic and complex civil process, the same way cases could be diverted to other than formal ways of solving a dispute.

When certain disputes or conflicts arise between parties about their interest, the dispute is to be resolved with the help of mediation, the mediation taking place could be in the form of a Formal Way that is District and session courts i.e. Evidence-taking courts, High Court, on the other hand, is regarded as the court of legality, Supreme court, that is the apex court is considered to be the court of constitutionality i.e. with the Article 142 of the Indian Constitution,[5] The Supreme Court has an authority to make laws to ensure complete justice.

In the same way, certain informal ways for sorting the dispute could also be taken into consideration viz. Mediation, Conciliation, and Arbitration that is to divert the cases to these forums.

Diverting cases to alternative forums also mentioned in Section 89 of the civil procedure code[6] is a matter that can be sorted out of the court and must be entertained. There also comes out as a great option the judiciary can focus its resources on addressing pending cases, thereby reducing delays, and ensuring litigants can get justice in time. It can also help reduce the case burden on the courts, but it alone cannot address the systemic delays in the judicial process.

Section 8 of the Arbitration and Conciliation Act 1996 [7]also ensures that if a party comes into a contract and if the clause states that the matter later should be sorted with the help of arbitration then Courts must not be involved as it would overburden the courts bringing delays to the system.

Fixing delays in the judicial system needs urgent changes in how the system is working today, along with meaningful improvements in legal education to better train the lawyers and judges of tomorrow, as we get what we sow. If reforms are brought into the academic curriculum, then we can ensure the change at a vast level that is especially important.

Law school often prioritizes theory over practical skills, leaving graduates unprepared for real-life legal practice. The syllabus that just focuses on the core law subjects should focus on practical training in legal drafting, case management, and court interaction to address this.

Moot courts, Youth Parliaments, and Preparing Drafts should be added as a practical subject out of other core subjects that one is bound to study which will further give them the knowledge of the real world.

We must bring our focus onto how judicial exams are being conducted, as there is a critical bottleneck in the system and so is the insufficient number of judges compared to India's vast population. Addressing this requires prompt recruitment and filling of judicial vacancies. Furthermore, reforms in judicial examinations, including the fastening of the recruitment process ensuring quicker results, not delaying it for so long as this in a way is also responsible for the backlogs and delays that are faced by courts and people respectively, are imperative to enhance the system's capacity to handle increasing caseloads.

First, there are not enough vacancies and if there is a vacancy then the result is delayed. These shortages and recruitment delays result in an overburdened judiciary, with each judge overseeing an unmanageable number of cases. State-level recruitment exams for the judiciary often face inefficiencies.

Such delays hinder time and worsen the case backlogs and the rise in case numbers due to the rise in crime respectively, there also arises a need for more platforms for justice to be ensured as “Justice Delayed is Justice Denied.”

Governments should distribute dedicated funds to upgrade court infrastructure, particularly in rural and remote areas. Expanding legal aid and setting up online courts will ensure each and all communities and individuals in remote areas can seek justice without any educational or virtual barriers.

Out of ten people, nine people are not even aware of the basic rights that they have enshrined in the Constitution. Be it their Fundamental Rights, spreading public awareness about the same and setting up more legal aid cells could add to a greater opportunity for people being treated unjustly.

Lower legal costs and easier access to legal services will empower more people to exercise their rights. They will also be more eager to know about their rights and take a stand if violated.

For all the examinations being held, there should be a transparent appointment process and greater accountability which will further address concerns of nepotism, bias, or favoritism, making people strengthen their faith in the judiciary.

Not only with the recruitment process but there should also be transparency in the court proceedings as people would be more aware of the situation. Direct access to court schedules, judgments, and live streaming of proceedings, allows people to understand how justice is delivered.

Handling cases efficiently and ensuring quicker judgments will enhance the judiciary’s credibility. When court proceedings are going to be more accessible to people and decisions are to be upheld in a more legitimate, accountable, and transparent form.

It will reassure the public that cases are managed fairly and without bias, strengthening people’s confidence in the justice system. 

Conclusion:

The Judiciary is one of the branches of the government that acts as the protector of rights and the interpreter of laws and thus becomes the backbone of a democratic society as mentioned above.

Yet, various problems undermine its ability to deliver prompt and effective justice such as systemic inefficiencies, prolonged delays, and limited access.

Judicial reforms are not something that could be treated as an optional matter, but they are more than essential to uphold the rule of law, reinforce public confidence, ensure justice reaches everyone, and stand by the notion that “Justice Delayed Is Justice Denied.”

Judicial reform ensures that people continue to trust the system through necessary changes. By ensuring changes at a nucleus level through consistent efforts, we will achieve these reforms and could reimagine the judiciary for a better India.

References

[1] The Government of India Act 1935 (25 & 26 Geo. 5. c. 42)

[2] Kesavananda Bharati v. State of Kerala is AIR 1973 SC 1461.

[3] Ex-parte order can refer to a hearing, decree, or other legal action that involves only one party. 

[4] Consumer Protection Act of 2019

[5] Article 142 of the constitution of India

[6] 89, CPC enables courts to determine whether a matter can be resolved through ADR

[7] Arbitration and Conciliation Act of 1996