Second in list of states with most cases pending trial

Vadodara: Gujarat again became the second state with most pendency of cases in the country in 2020. The National Crime Records Bureau’s (NCRB) report titled ‘Crime in India 2020’, released on Wednesday, reveals that last year over 13.7 lakh cases registered under the Indian Penal Code and over 21 lakh cases registered under state laws are pending trial in different courts of the state.

The pendency of cases saw a rise of above 19% over the previous year. The pendency rate of these cases also rose by 5.9%.

Gujarat had second highest cases pending trial at the end of the year in 2019 and 2018 too.

The Covid-19 pandemic and the resulting restrictions put in place hampered the trials last year, opine lawyers practicing criminal law.

They said that other factors also added to the overall higher number of cases pending trial in the state. The high number of FIRs registered for violation of Covid guidelines too added to the burden of the judicial department.

“Due to the lockdown, only urgent cases like bail applications were being heard last year, so that led to an increase in pending trials,” said Vadodara-based lawyer Hitesh Gupta.

“Besides the pandemic, there are also other limitations like lack of infrastructure and shortage of backend staff in courts which slows down the judicial system,” Gupta said. He added that support staff like a stenographer or a clerk that a judge needs for faster trial, aren’t available in enough numbers.

Now, as the physical hearings of the cases have resumed, lawyers want their cases to move forward faster. “The courts are issuing summons and even if all witnesses are present, it is not possible to examine them in a single sitting due to limitations,” Gupta told TOI.

While the conviction rate in the cases registered under the state laws increased last year to 54.9%, it decreased to 40.7% in cases registered under the IPC.