How Is The Indian Judicial System Forcing People To Become Criminals?

India, the upcoming third largest economy of the world has one of the largest number of pending litigation cases. The Indian Judicial System is staggeringly overburdened. While the Constitution of the country puts justice – social, economic and political above all, as a citizen’s right but it is easier for a generational poor family to overcome poverty in our country than to get justice via courts. 

 The Stagnated Judicial System – 

In the heart of New Delhi, a 72-year-old retired schoolteacher has for 23 years attended court hearings on a dispute over a piece of property. His is not an isolated case in the Indian judicial scenario, where justice drags with such speed that often outpaces its admirers. More than 44 lakh cases are pending in High Courts. An incredible 275 lakh cases remain undecided in the Trial Courts. The Indian judicial system is at such a critical crossroads that delay has become endemic to the very process of justice itself.

 What’s The Magnitude Of Crisis? 

The numbers have a telling story. There are over 6.4 million cases that are pending in various courts in Maharashtra alone. Delhi High Court sits nearly at full strength on the judges’ bench, and at the current disposal rate, it would take nearly 27 years to clear its backlog. But these statistics are staggering and only scratch the surface of a deeper institutional crisis.

The financial implications are chilling as well. 4.7% of GDP is locked up in a series of legal arguments over disputed tax revenues, and ₹50,000 crores worth of investments remain frozen in installed projects. To put this in perspective, it’s enough to fund India’s midday meal scheme for three years: millions of school children could get far healthier meals.

India’s judiciary is sustained on an extremely meager budget of a mere 0.08-0.09% of GDP vis-à-vis other major democracies. Thus, for instance, about 1.2% of the federal budget is allocated to the US judiciary, whereas in the UK, the proportion of the judicial budget in the government’s expenditure runs around 1%. Such woefully low funding is manifest in many ways, be it the crumbling infrastructure, technological backwardness, or what have you.

This resource constraint most obviously goes into the judge-to-population ratio: India has only about 20 judges per million population, while the United States boasts 107 per million, and the United Kingdom, 51 per million. In Mumbai, for example, judges juggle more than 300 cases at a time, rendering the careful consideration of each case nearly impossible.

You won’t believe that how the Human Cost Is Beyond Statistics!

The most pathetic human consequence of judicial delays can be witnessed in criminal cases. Today, more than three lakh under-trials languish in prisons, which constitutes about two-thirds of the prison population. In Bihar, for instance, this figure reaches an alarming 85%. These are not statistics alone; these are broken lives and shattered families.

There are several cases where accused are under-trial imprisonment in jails and during this period of imprisonment, they lose their jobs, their partners leave them, and children lose schooling. Who is responsible for these lives that are irreparably harmed due to delayed and slow judicial proceedings.

The Cost to Business: Stifling Economic Growth As Well 

It not only has a direct impact on finance but extends a lot beyond business and economy. Judicial delay has now become the biggest deterrent for foreign investors to invest in India. According to a World Bank study, India takes an average of 1,445 days for contract enforcement, while the same is achieved in Singapore in just 120 days and in China in 406 days.

Real estate developers reveal that around 35% of the cost of their projects is due to delay in legal clearances and dispute resolution. Similarly, the pharmaceutical industry faces this problem when patients “who were commercially viable but not given drugs. It takes at least 8-10 years for a patent dispute to be resolved, and thereby destroys each investment into research and development”.

Technology Gap – Modern Problem Requires Modern Solutions

While courts around the world are embracing digital transformation, in India, the process is still piece-meal. The e-Courts project, initiated way back in 2005, could not turn into a completely successful plan. So far, only 30% of the courts have a fully functional e-filing system and virtual hearings, which gained momentum in the past due to the COVID-19 pandemic, are met with resistance from lawyers as well as judges.

Successful International Models from previous lessons. The Courts of the Future project of Singapore is a fitting example of how technology can fundamentally transform approaches that must change and get transformed for delivering justice. After a completely integrated case management system was put in place, it reduced average case disposition time by 65%. In Estonia, the e-Court system in civil cases has been processed entirely. In fact, there has been an average of 100 days in this regard.

Most Recent Reforms Attempt –

Most reform initiatives have had mixed success so far. The Commercial Courts Act 2015 aims at speeding up the disposal of business disputes as well. However, that also has a partial success rate in certain jurisdictions where disposal rates increase with an average resolution time of 18-24 months.

National Judicial Data Grid, started in the year 2015, has increased the tracking and monitoring level of cases but has not been much effective on the disposal rate. The popular plea bargaining for criminal cases promises a lot but still lies largely untouched, primarily because of cultural resistance and procedural complexity.

What Can Indian Judicial System Learn From Other Countries ?

Germany used its specialized courts system to reduce average disposition time to 183 days.

Brazil Small Claims Courts dispose of 90% of cases within 90 days

The Electronic Filing System in South Korea has electronically handled as much as 80% of all its civil cases.

What Is The Road Ahead?  How Can We Improve?

Resource Augmentation – The judiciary budget must be increased immediately to at least 0.5% of GDP, which can help in modernizing infrastructures, adopting technology, and increasing the strength of judges. Successful models like South Korea demonstrate how increased judicial funding (0.8% of GDP) can transform delivery of justice.

Technology Integration – Full implementation of e-Courts must be conducted. A model done in Estonia shows fully digitalized because its successful case disposition reduced a time of 70%. With proper tools and artificial intelligence, case categorization and scheduling can be even more enhanced.

Promotion of Alternative Dispute Resolution – Some cases involving certain categories must require pre-trial mediation based on the Singapore model. To encourage settlement rates, tax incentives for the adoption of ADR and special training for mediators can be made.

Procedural Reforms – As a substitute, the setting of simplified small claim procedures-having Brazil as a model-will drastically reduce the burdens on courts. The implementation of case management protocols, which are present in Germany’s system, is most efficient .

India’s judicial crisis is the most critical challenge posing a threat to the very fabric of democratic governance. It requires a little more than a change in policy: it requires a radical rethink on how justice delivery can be made more effective. Challenges are significant, yet history has shown, with case studies across the world, that improvement is possible with committed action.

In fact, an effective judiciary is not just a desirable component in the way to be a global economic power for India but essential. Incremental change is over. Now it is time to overhaul: plug the symptoms and attack the root causes.

The path forward would call for political will, professional commitment, and public support. Such combined efforts alone can help India’s judicial system fulfill its mandate within the constitution and make sure that justice, delayed as it may be, is not denied forever to its people.

The change is not going to be easy, but it will indeed be important for India’s future. As Justice Warren Burger said so well, “A sense of confidence in the courts is essential to maintain the fabric of ordered liberty for a free people.” For India, restoring that confidence through efficient justice delivery isn’t an option at this point, it’s imperative for its democratic future. Otherwise everyone will carry a pistol and seek justice.