Supreme Court judge disapproves of HC circular on case quota for judicial officers

Disapproving of a Karnataka high court circular that has set the number of cases each judicial officer must dispose of to reach a minimum quota every month, Supreme Court judge Justice S Abdul Nazeer said such norms do not work in the judiciary given the complex nature of cases.

In the same breath, he suggested the formation of a committee to come up with recommendations that can reduce the pendency of cases.

He was speaking at the valedictory function of the 20th Biennial State-Level Conference of Judicial Officers here on Sunday. Referring to the circular (number 4/2020, dated April 19, 2021), Justice Nazeer said the high court must ensure that the constant revision of norms should not be demanding on committed judicial officers.

To back his argument, he cited three types of cases that are time-consuming: 1) Highly contested suits with several accused persons represented by multiple lawyers; 2) Commercial lawsuits that involve a series of complicated questions of law and deal with lengthy awards, and 3) Cases regarding disproportionate assets.

Justice Nazeer also said the minimum quota regime would not be able to rightly assess the performance of judicial officers who are posted in courts where there are only fresh matters or in courts where the pendency of cases is very low. He said some judicial officers remand the matters under pressure to show fewer pending cases.

“Non-reaching of minimum quota should not hinder judicial officers when considered for promotion or elevation,” he said and called for forming the committee under a former judge who has risen from the district court to make suitable recommendations on clearing pendency cases.

The 25-minute speech, punctuated with light-hearted banter, focused on guiding the principal district judges. Of the 4.5 crore pending cases in India, around 1.5 crore cases are more than five years old, he said. District and subordinate courts account for over 85% of the pending cases in India.

He called upon the judicial officers to be more responsible to litigants so that the undue delay does not shake the confidence of ordinary persons in the justice system.

Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court Ritu Raj Awasthi, Chief Justice of Madhya Pradesh Ravi Malimath and Law Minister J C Madhuswamy also spoke during the event.

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