MUMBAI: Supreme Court Judge, Justice Abhay Oka, on Saturday said that in Maharashtra, it was “very difficult to get infrastructure from the govt” for the judiciary but noted that the last five years showed promise and things changed “for the good.”
Justice Oka said many issues ail the criminal justice system but flagged various issues, including a better case management system, increasing judge strength, revamping infrastructure, better quality of legal aid, and a policy for prioritising cases.
Justice Oka, a former judge of the Bombay high court, called for reforms and introspection in the criminal justice system. He was delivering the Ashok Desai Memorial Lecture in Mumbai on “What Ails Our Criminal Justice System: Some Thoughts.” While there are many “ailments,” Justice Oka said the nation, however, has a system of “fair trials” and expressed pride that India gave “even (Ajmal) Kasab a fair trial (in the 26/11 terror case).”
“Talking about this state, the State of Maharashtra, we struggle to get infrastructure from the govt. We lack basic infrastructure.” In Maharashtra, at least 15 district courts were built after the high court passed orders in PILs in the last 10 years, he said, adding, “Of course, to some extent, I see a change for the good,” in the last five years. In Pune, civil judges had no separate chamber, said Justice Oka, adding that in Karnataka, things are “different,” where the Kalburgi high court complex even resembles a “five-star resort,” and the govt gives what the judiciary seeks on the administrative front.
Justice Oka was the Chief Justice before his elevation to the apex court.
Expressing personal views too, he said personally he is averse to the death sentence and said the topic requires a debate from all stakeholders. “First and foremost, low judge-to-population ratio” ails the system, he said. In 2002, the Supreme Court said in five years, for every million, there should be 50 judges.
But “we are still at 24 per million,” he said, while pendency multiplied. But he said mere appointments aren’t enough; we must revamp judicial infrastructure. Magistrates crumble under the pressure of cheque bouncing cases, said Justice Oka, flagging it as a primary concern.
“We really need to introspect if our system needs capital punishment. It is a debate whether the state can take someone’s life. We need to see if capital punishment is a deterrent,” Justice Oka said, even as he said the criminal justice system is plagued by a plethora of issues and the common man has to contend with some unmet expectations. He reiterated what the top court laid down—bail is the rule and jail, an exception, which he said must be followed seriously. He reminded that provisions under the procedural law do not make it mandatory for police to arrest every accused named in every FIR, even when the offence invoked attracts over seven years’ imprisonment—considered serious.
Justice Oka also criticised the trend of media trials on social media, terming it a “sad reflection of the retributive tendency that still exists in society.” “People still believe once a person is arrested, he is guilty…unaware of the difference between bail and acquittal.” The Supreme Court judge said courts were overburdened with bail pleas in special Act cases where bail norms are more rigorous and need time to delve into merits, taking away from time given for regular bail cases.
The courts need to do a very “tightrope” walk, he said, noting that even judges of the high court face criticism for giving or not granting bail in some cases.
Justice Oka said in India, of the 4.58 crore cases pending in trial and district courts, 3.48 crore are criminal cases. The total pending cases across high courts are 62.5 lakh, including 18.25 lakh criminal cases. He said these figures disclose the “enormity” of the “task” before the court. In Maharashtra, across districts, around 55 lakh cases are pending; these include 38 lakh criminal cases, and in Mumbai, the magistrates’ courts have over 6 lakh pending cases, while in Mumbai’s sessions courts, the pendency is over 46,000 cases. Before the Bombay high court, bail applications pending are more than 5,000, and total criminal matters pending are over 1 lakh. Across cities in Pune, Mumbai, and Thane, the bail pleas pending are 1,800.
“We celebrated 75 years of the Constitution, but this is not an occasion to celebrate, but to introspect… whether we have fulfilled the expectations of the common man,” he said, and his personal view was that the expectations were not fulfilled. He noted that it is difficult for common citizens to get FIRs registered, and they hence go to court with private complaints, but this exposes many to “abuse” as “civil disputes take the colour of criminal cases.”