In terms of states, 1.18 crore cases are pending in courts in Uttar Pradesh, followed by Maharashtra at 54 lakh. This data was provided by the law ministry in response to questions by MPs Rahul Kaswan, Hibi Eden and Khalilur Rahaman.
When he was asked to explain the reasons for the delay in resolving cases, the minister replied that the pendency is caused by issues like “Availability of physical infrastructure and supporting court staff, the complexity of facts involved, the nature of evidence, the cooperation of stakeholders viz. bar, investigation agencies, witnesses, and litigants and proper application of rules and procedures”.
“In case of pendency of criminal cases, the criminal justice system functions on assistance from various agencies, viz. Police, Prosecution, Forensic Labs, Handwriting Experts and Medico-Legal Experts. Delay in providing assistance by allied agencies also entails a delay in disposal of cases,” the minister said in his reply.
To understand the problem…
