It is a good sign that our Prime Minister and Chief Justices have started speaking openly these days on the plight of India’s judicial system. We are celebrating 75th year of independence but what freedom is this! This is only political freedom, that is, now in India the place of British Queen has been given to the President and the place of British Prime Minister to the Prime Minister. Our elected MPs and MLAs also make laws. But this is formal political freedom but has the country got cultural, economic and social freedom?
Have we been able to build an egalitarian society in India? These works have also happened to some extent but they have happened, in a marginal way! The slavery of the British still prevails on the original page. Take only three areas. Education, Medicine and Justice! The slavery which has been going on in these three areas for the last two hundred years is as it is. Our Prime Minister people and judges are speaking openly against this slavery but they do not know how to get rid of India from this slavery. I have written earlier on education and medicine. Let’s talk justice this time.
At present 4 crore 70 lakh cases are pending in our courts. Of these, 76 per cent are prisoners whose cases are pending in courts. His crime has not been proven but he is serving 10-10 years in jail. After spending 10-15 years in jail, now if the courts prove them innocent, do they get any compensation? Do those policemen and those who wrote the FIR get any punishment? Apart from this, the court proceedings are so long and expensive that most of the people of India are not able to take advantage of it. Of the 76 per cent of the above prisoners, 73 per cent are Dalits, tribals, backward and minorities. Court debates and decisions run in English are nothing less than a witchcraft. The plaintiff and the defendant do not even know what has been argued in their cases and what is the basis of the decision.
Our judges and lawyers are highly qualified, but English licks all their power. If our governments, judges and lawyers start looking for solutions to these weaknesses, then true judicial independence can be established in the country. For speedy disposal of cases, it is necessary that our judges work for at least 8 hours a day in 365 days of the year and at least 250-275 days in a year. Right now they work only 168 days a year, that too only 5-6 hours a day! The study of law should also be started in its own language and all the provincial courts should have debates and decisions in their own language. In the Supreme Court, there should be an option of English only for the next five years, but all the work should be done in Hindi. Government interference in the appointment of judges should be minimized so that the independence of the judiciary remains intact. In many countries of the world, which were slaves like India earlier, even after independence, the courts work in their own languages. Countries whose courts are still run through foreign languages remain laggy. In the 75th year of India’s independence, if our leaders and judges continue to make empty speeches, then what will be a bigger joke of this festival than this?
