Summon tech to address judicial delays

Indian judiciary can move towards accessible, efficient, and timely justice for all by incorporating measures that embrace artificial intelligence

- ANAND DESAI

OVER THE YEARS, much efforts have been made and significant expenditure incurred for modernising judicial and legal processes to make justice accessible to every citizen. Despite this, the judicial backlog in India has grown from about 93 lakh pending cases in courts in 1984 to around 5.3 crore pending cases as of this July, with a few lakh more cases pending in tribunals. The fact that it is not possible to accurately address three critical concerns that a litigant faces—the outcome of the case, the time of the verdict, and the total cost of litigation—reflects the uncertainties inherent in Indian litigation.

The government has invested heavily in technology through the three phases of the e-Courts Project kicked off in 2011. In the first phase (2011-2015), ₹935 crore was allocated for the computerisation of courts, establishing the Case Information System, and basic infrastructure. In the second phase (2015-2023),₹1,670 crore was earmarked for e-filing, integrated case management, grievance redress, and digital payments. In the ongoing third phase (2023-2027) ₹7,210 crore has been allocated for the digitisation of documents, launching virtual courts, expanding cloud infrastructure, and providing e-Sewa Kendras for accessible court services.