QUANTIFYING THE STATE OF INDIA'S JUSTICE SYSTEM

A reality check by the India Justice Report 2025, which ranks states on the capacity of their police, judiciary, prisons and legal aid, found structural inefficiencies and chronic under-resourcing of institutions. A look at where they stand

- SHEKHAR SINGH & PRABHAT SHUKLA

WITH pendency of cases spiraling in a country of 1.4 billion people, justice delayed is justice denied. What ails the justice delivery mechanism of the world's largest democracy? The fourth edition of India Justice Report 2025, which ranks states on the capacity of police, judiciary, prisons and legal aid, portrays a worrying picture the system continues to falter under the weight of systemic gaps, alarming shortfalls of people and deep-rooted inequalities. We have a police force that remains critically understaffed, a judiciary struggling to reflect the diversity it serves and a prison system buckling under the pressure of overcrowding and neglect.

With 23% vacancies in police ranks and a 50% shortfall in forensic staff, it's too tall an order to expect police to function effectively and uphold the rule of law. Despite a 2009 directive to ensure 33% reservation for women in police forces, no state or Union Territory has met the criteria. The reality is women comprise just 8% of senior officers in the force.

The judiciary fares no better. The judge-to-population ratio remains stagnant at 15 judges per 10 lakh people, far from the Law Commission's recommendation of 50. Although women constitute 38% of the lower judiciary, they are grossly underrepresented in high courts at just 14%. And with only one state, Karnataka, meeting its quota for SC, ST, and OBC representation, one must ask: whose justice is being delivered? The crisis continues behind bars as well. Prison staff vacancies have soared to 30%, while overcrowding stands at 131%, fuelled by a 76% rise in the number of undertrials. Compounding this is a 38% drop in paralegal volunteers, diminishing access to legal aid for those who need it most.