Calcutta HC has highest backlog of cases pending for 50+ years

NEW DELHI: In a ranking that it can do without, Calcutta high court (HC) has topped the list of HCs having huge backlogs of cases pending for disposal for over five decades. The HC, one of the three first set up by the British, has 2,185 such cases yet to be disposed of, which is 94% of the total 2,329 cases pending for over 50 years across all HCs. And since last year, Calcutta HC has added 140 more to its docket.

According to the pendency statistics released by Union law ministry on Thursday, there are 22,829 cases pending for 40-50 years at 25 HCs across country, another 63,239 for 30-40 years, over 3.4 lakh for 20-30 years and 11.5 lakh for 10-20 years.

The oldest case in a high court is pending for 74 years, since 1951. Only eight HCs besides Calcutta have pendency of cases for over five decades - 56 in Madras HC, 46 in Patna HC, 17 in Allahabad HC, nine in Telangana HC, eight in Orissa HC, four in Madhya Pradesh HC, and two each in Bombay and Punjab & Haryana HCs.

In comparison, the district judiciary has done better with only 1,113 cases pending for five decades, of which 39% are only from Bengal. The data was released by law minister Arjun Ram Meghwal in response to a question in Rajya Sabha on Thursday. The total pendency of cases which are more than 10 years old is at 15,77,191.

In response to another question on pendency of cases, Meghwal said several factors lead to long pendency, including "complexity of the facts involved, nature of evidence, cooperation of stakeholders, viz. bar, investigation agencies, witnesses and litigants, besides the availability of physical infrastructure, supporting court staff and proper application of rules and procedures to monitor, track and bunch hearing of cases".

He highlighted that pendency of cases and vacancy for judges in HCs are not necessarily directly related - as of Aug 1, against the sanctioned strength of 1,122 judges in HCs, the working strength was at 778, with 344 vacancies. "Against these vacancies, 138 proposals for appointment of judges are at various stages of processing between govt and SC Collegium," Meghwal said. Govt has not yet received any recommendation against 206 vacancies, he added.

This seems to have escaped the attention of the higher judiciary, notwithstanding SC issuing from time to time directives to all HCs to ensure that pendency of all cases over 10 years old is cleared on priority basis.

As reported by TOI, govt had set up National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reforms in Aug 2011 with the objective of improving legal access by reducing delays and arrears in the system and enhancing accountability through structural changes and by setting performance standards and capacities. Separate arrears committees have also been set up at all 25 HCs to clear cases pending for more than five years. Similar committees are functional at district courts.
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