NEW DELHI: For the first time, as many as four states and a Union Territory have managed to

in their subordinate courts to almost zero. It’s not a mean achievement, considering that

in the country account for 23 lakh, or almost 9% of all cases pending in the subordinate courts.

Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala and Chandigarh are the five where the justice delivery system has picked up pace and courts have managed to dispose of almost all

or more.

Five other states — Delhi, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra and Karnataka — are not too far behind and have brought down pendency of 10-year-old cases to almost 1% of their total pending cases.

This data, however, does not include

or high courts.

There are 2.54 crore cases pending in around 17,000 subordinate courts across the country, of which 22.76 lakh cases have been pending for more than 10 years, according to latest statistics from the

(NJDG).

Some states like Haryana, Punjab, Madhya Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Delhi have a large number of pending cases. That these states have managed to dispose of nearly all cases older than 10 years shows the efficiency of judges in these states and the proactive measures adopted by the government and the HCs in making the justice delivery system responsive and effective.

Huge pendency in courts has resulted in a large number of undertrials languishing in jails for longer than the sentence they would have served if convicted. According to the government’s estimates, two-thirds of the country’s prison population comprises undertrials, a reflection of the decayed system that has failed to harness technology to speed up the justice delivery mechanism.

Yet, some states seem to have overcome these challenges, revamped their prosecution system, adopted good practices and carried out automation in court procedures to make a difference while some others continue to struggle. For instance, Gujarat, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha and West Bengal are still bogged down by huge pendency, including cases older than 10 years.

Gujarat at nearly 20% has the highest percentage of cases pending for over 10 years in subordinate courts, followed by Odisha at 17%, Bihar at 16%, UP at 13%, West Bengal and Uttarakhand at 12% each and J&K at 11%.

The justice delivery system needs a complete overhaul if it has to be made responsive and effective. Automation is the need of the hour where all that is required is to allow an aggrieved person to file a case online from any destination by fulfilling the required formalities and submitting documents.

The government has already put in place some technological platforms such as the National Judicial Data Grid and a court software where all cases are uploaded real-time with updates on the case status available online and provision to update litigants and lawyers through mobile phone and text messgaes.

The worst sufferers of pendency are women and senior citizens, with around 15% of the 2.54 crore pending cases related to them. Eleven lakh cases filed by senior citizens and over 26 lakh cases filed by women are pending in courts today.