A nagging issue towards which the 13th Finance Commission diverted its attention was that of delivery of justice and the judicial structure in the State. As we know, there is extraordinary pendency of lawsuits in our courts from the lowest to the highest level. This is a nationwide phenomenon and not anything special to our State. Among other things, the 13th Finance Commission had recommended that new 28 courts be opened in J&K that would function in morning and evening and support justice delivery system. There were other recommendations also like the increased timing of the courts.
It will be reminded that the Chief Justice of Jammu and Kashmir took steps to streamline the process of justice by filling the vacancies of judges in the High Court and also by directing that vacancies in lower courts are also filled. The purpose was to reduce the number of pending cases in these courts. He has been also monitoring the progress in reducing the number of pending cases. The recommendation of 13th Finance Commission was also aimed at the same purpose. The State Government had reservations about accepting the recommendation of the Finance Commission of opening Morning and Evening Courts. According to it’s thinking, it involved security aspect and the Government was not prepared to take any risks. However alternatively it suggested that these should be converted into 14 each of Mobile Magistrates and Special Mobile Magistrates courts.
In the first place it is a moot point whether the State Government is right in demanding that these Morning and Evening Courts should be converted into Mobile Magistrates’ Courts. The Government has been claiming that the situation in the State has returned to normalcy. Why then should not Morning and Evening Courts be opened?
Anyway, that is not the point we would like to focus on. It is three years that the Central Government authorized the State to go ahead with its reformed plan and identify the locations where the mobile courts would function.
Since the High Court has now identified the locations, the Government should see that there is no further delay and the courts are created with all facilities as early as possible so as to boost the justice delivery system.
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