It is time to identify causes of delays in our justice delivery system and provide meaningful solutions | The Indian Express

It is time to identify causes of delays in our justice delivery system and provide meaningful solutions | The Indian Express

Written by Madan B Lokur |Updated: August 21, 2019 9:10:06 am

The writer retired as a justice of the Supreme Court of India in December 2018.

It is time to identify causes of delays in our justice delivery system and provide meaningful solutions

Case and court management are the most important areas which, unfortunately, have not been adverted to in the Economic Surveys. The Ease of Doing Business Report of the World Bank for 2018 and 2019 shows that the time taken to decide a case has remained static at 1,445 days. Why is that?

If we take up judicial reforms with seriousness, expeditious and effective justice can see the light of day and improve India’s standing in the reports of the World Bank and other institutions and organisations that study judicial processes.

The Economic Survey of 2017-18 and of 2018-19 provided new insights into traditional areas of judicial reform. These surveys, along with the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business of 2018 and 2019 debunked and also confirmed some myths associated with justice delivery. These four reports tell us that knee-jerk reactions do not work and the need is for systemic and structural reforms.