Courts for women, welcome move

The proposal to set up 1,023 fast track courts across the country for speedy trial of cases of crime against women and children is welcome as they, being more vulnerable than all other sections of society, suffer most from judicial delays. Work on setting up the courts is expected to start on October 2, with 777 of them to be put in place in the first phase in nine states and others to follow later. At present, over 1.66 lakh cases of rape and other crimes, including those under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, are pending in courts. The special courts will have targets in the disposal of cases. The Supreme Court has also issued directions to lower courts to give priority to POCSO cases. The aim is to reduce the pendency of cases over a period and to deliver immediate justice to victims in cases that arise in the future.

The setting up of fast track courts may not be enough to deal effectively with the problem of pendency of cases. Much money has been spent on fast track courts, and there are over 500 of them functioning in the country now, dealing with many kinds of cases. There are about six lakh cases pending with them. The problems that affect the working of ordinary courts affect fast track courts too. Lack of infrastructure and resources, inadequacy of staff and poor facilities are some of them. Unnecessary adjournments, over-listing of cases and delays in other processes like procuring forensic reports etc in time, have all been reported. So increasing the number of courts and judges in itself will not ensure fast and timely disposal of cases. Sometimes it has been noticed that the shifting of judges to fast track courts affects the working of other courts.

It is also necessary to improve the functioning of the police and the investigation process to ensure that cases are taken to the right conclusion. Many cases of crime against women are poorly investigated. The prosecution is sometimes incompetent or indifferent. The result is that the conviction rate in such crimes is low. The problems in the enforcement of law and delivery of justice also arise from the entrenched social attitudes towards women. Those accused of heinous crimes even get political protection. The law enforcement authorities in UP are seen to be on the side of Kuldip Sengar, a BJP MLA who is accused in the Unnao rape case, and shielding a former union minister Chinmayanand who has been charged with rape by a law student, rather than with the victims. So more courts do not always mean better justice.