HC gears for speedy disposal of justice
Directed all Principal District & Sessions Judges to provide detailed information within a day about civil, criminal cases pending disposal over past five to ten years
Srinagar July 19: The Jammu and Kashmir High Court today directed all the Principal District & Sessions Judges in the state to provide detailed information within a day about all the civil and criminal cases pending disposal in the districts over the past five to ten years.
In an order passed on Thursday the top court of the state asked the Principal District & Sessions Judges of Anantnag, Bandipora, Baramulla, Budgam, Doda (Bhaderwah), Ganderbal, Jammu, Kathua, Kargil, Kulgam, Kupwara, Ramban, Leh, Poonch, Pulwama, Rajouri, Reasi, Samba, Shopian, Srinagar and Udhampur to provide the details about the pending civil and criminal suits through fax within a day.
Setting an action plan, targeted at disposal of cases by the end of March 2019, the High Court last week directed all the Principal/Additional District and Sessions Judges to take required “effective steps” in the direction.
It directed the presiding officers in the subordinate judiciary to decide and dispose all criminal cases of under-trials by 31.03.2019 where the charge sheet has been filed on or before 31.03.2016.
The judges are required to decide and dispose off all the criminal revisions by 3I .03.2019 filed on or before 3I .06.2018.
By 31st of December of the out gone year more than 2.22 lakh criminal and civil cases were pending in Jammu and Kashmir High Court and other subordinate courts in the state.
They have also been asked to decide and dispose off the suits by 31.03.2019 in the criminal cases (irrespective of involvement of the under trials), wherein charge sheet/challan have been filed on or before 31.03.2014.
The judicial officers have further been required to decide and dispose off by 31.03.2019, all criminal appeals, filed on or before 31.03.2017
Regarding civil cases, the judges have been asked to decide and dispose of by 31.03 2019 all civil original suits and other civil matters which have been filed by or before 31.03.2014.
Besides they are required to decide and dispose of all civil miscellaneous appeals filed on or before 30.06.2018 by 31 03.2019 and all regular appeals filed till 31.03.2014 by ending March next year.
By 31st of December of the out gone year more than 2.22 lakh criminal and civil cases were pending in Jammu and Kashmir High Court and other subordinate courts in the state.
Out of this huge pendency nearly 62000 cases were pending in the High Court while the number of pendency in subordinate courts stood at 1,60,154.
Almost 11,250 cases were instituted in the High Court between April to 1st of December 2017, while as 98,896 cases were instituted during the same period in the lower courts.
However, the High Court disposed off only 9,603 cases while the subordinate courts could dispose off 78,496 cases during the period.
Rashid Paul is Associate Editor at Kashmir Images.
He can be reached at [email protected]
