Govt red tape sabotaging trial court infra: Kerala High Court on 24-year delay in constructing Idukki District Court complex

The Kerala High Court on Tuesday took strong exception to government red tapism, resulting in a delay of 24 years in constructing a District Court Complex in Idukki, Kerala (Bar Association v. State of Kerala & Ors)..Justice PV Kunhikrishnan made the observation while passing a judgment directing the State government to expeditiously transfer land for the construction of the court complex, first contemplated back in 1997. .The Court underscored the crucial role that trial courts play in the justice-delivery system and minced no words in attributing the delay in providing adequate infrastructure for the same to government's red-tapism. "The trial courts are the backbone of the Indian Judiciary. They are the decision makers in a lis. The appellate courts are only judging their decisions. If there is no proper infrastructure and proper atmosphere for the decision makers in the trial courts, that will be a threat to the justice delivery system itself. The present case is one such case, which will show the sorry state of affairs as far as the infrastructure of a court and the attempt to solve the issue is sabotaged because of red tape rules," the judgment said..Justice Kunhikrishnan quoted what the Chief Justice of India NV Ramana had observed in a recent speech."Good Judicial infrastructure for courts in India has always been an afterthought. It is because of this mindset that courts in India still operate from dilapidated structures, making it difficult to effectively perform their function. Judicial infrastructure is important for improving access to justice and to meet the growing demands of the public that is more aware of its rights and is developing economically, socially and culturally. It is baffling to note that the improvement and maintenance of judicial infrastructure are still being carried out in an ad-hoc and unplanned manner.".The judgment came on a petition filed by the Bar Association of Idukki (IDA) raising its members' grievances regarding the fact that the three courts and attached offices in Idukki district have been functioning with limited facilities.The petitioners argued that it has been the long-standing dream of the lawyers, advocate clerks, and other litigant public to get a court building for the courts and its offices..According to the petitioners, the following sequence of events lead up to this case :This issue of constructing a was mooted about 2 and a half decades back in 1997 when the President, Bar Association, Idukki submitted a request in this regard to the Idukki Development Authority.Subsequently, in 1988, the IDA issued an order by which it accorded advance possession of two acres of land to the Registrar, High Court of Kerala for the construction of judicial complex subject to the approval of the Government. While the IDA was abolished in 2007, a request for approval and transfer of land was sent by the Registrar (Subordinate Judiciary) to the Addl. Chief Secretary, Home Department, Thiruvananthapuram.Based on this request, the State government passed an order in 2019 which stated that the ownership of the land will be retained with the District Panchayat and permission was granted for using the land for the purpose of constructing a judicial complex.However in 2021, the government passed a new order cancelling the 2019 order and stated that to hand over the necessary land for constructing the judicial complex, a fresh proposal is to be submitted by the Panchayat Director to the government. According to the petitioner, there is no justification for passing 2021 order which purportedly does not contain the reasons for cancelling the previous order and was issued without hearing the petitioner or the High CourtTherefore, they approached the High Court seeking orders to quash the 2021 order and directions to the authority concerned to initiate appropriate steps to construct a judicial complex at Idukki..Standing Counsel for the High Court supported the grievances of the petitioner and requested that any further delay on technical ground may be ruled out by this Court..While the Government Pleader, representing the State, argued that it was right in issuing the 2021 order, the Court stated that it cannot endorse the said stand of the government without hearing the stakeholders. It questioned the government's reasoning for cancelling the 2019 order only two years later.However, it appreciated the submission of the government that it would not stand in the way of allocating the required land in accordance with the law. The Court opined that the State government can issue the necessary direction to the Revenue Department to do the needful to see that the land referred in the 2019 order itself is allotted for the construction of the court complex at Idukki within a time frame.Accordingly, the Court directed the government to issue the necessary orders within a period of six weeks, after which the competent authorities are directed to see that the construction of court complex is completed immediately. ."Idukki is one of the important district in our State... As I observed earlier, without proper judicial infrastructure and a proper atmosphere to administer justice, the judiciary can not function. I am sure that the Government will cooperate with the High Court and will see that the dream of the Idukki people to get a new court complex is fulfilled soon," the Court stated in conclusion. .[Read Order]