Parliamentary Committee bats for regional benches of Supreme Court for better access to justice

The Department-Related Parliamentary Standing Committee on Personnel, Public Grievances, Law and Justice has recommended establishment of regional benches of the Supreme Court for better access to justice..The committee chaired by Rajya Sabha MP Sushil Kumar Modi presented its 133rd report on 'Judicial processes and their reforms' to both the Houses of the Parliament on Monday..As per the report, during the deliberations on the issue, the Committee was nearly unanimously in favour of regional benches. However, some members were also of the view that with the ongoing push for virtual courts in the country and rolling out of 5G infrastructure in the near future, the issue needs more careful examination..According to a member of the Committee, former Additional Solicitor General (ASG) of India and Senior Advocate P Wilson, an increase in the number of benches and judges on the bench would lead to the speedy disposal of cases and help clear the backlog of pending cases.Further, this increase would contribute to an elevation in the judge to population ratio within the apex court. Thus, Wilson emphasized that establishing permanent regional benches of the Supreme Court is imperative.Stating that there is intense competition among High Court judges to be elevated to the 34 seats in the Supreme Court, Wilson said that permanent regional benches will increase the capacity of the Supreme Court, paving the way for more diverse and meritorious judges in the apex court.On invoking Article 130 of the Indian Constitution, Wilson emphasized that the framers of the Constitution themselves understood that a time may come when the Supreme Court must sit at other places apart from Delhi.The use of the term “place or places” shows that the framers of the Constitution contemplated that the Court can sit in more than one place – obviously to ensure ease of access to citizens, he said."There cannot be a higher purpose. Undoubtedly, therefore, it is expedient that in the interest of the administration of justice, and access to justice, which is a fundamental right, the Law Ministry must take forward this proposal with the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India," Wilson stated.As regard virtual courts as a substitute for the regional benches, Wilson said that virtual courts will not and cannot be a substitute for a full-fledged regional bench of the Supreme Court as the registry of the Court would still be located at Delhi. "Virtual Courts have made the court-room accessible remotely but not the establishment," he emphasized..On December 16, 2009, the then Law Minister Veerappa Moily had requested the then Chief Justice of India (CJI) KG Balakrishnan for comments of the Court on the 229th Report of the Law Commission that recommended establishment of regional benches of the Supreme Court. .Thereafter, Justice Balakrishnan informed that a full Court meeting held on February 18. 2010 found no justification for deviating from its earlier resolutions on the subject and unanimously resolved that the recommendation made by the Committee cannot be accepted..On this, Wilson stated that the will of the people cannot be found in the decision of the full court of the Supreme Court but only in decision of parliament, which is the voice of the people.The final say on the issue cannot be left to the decision of the full court of the Supreme Court because the administration of justice is still a subject over which the parliament has legislative competence, he emphasized. He added that in any case, the independence of the judiciary will not be affected as the judges will still be selected as per the Memorandum of Procedure involving the Supreme Court Collegium."The Chief Justice of India will continue to be the master of the roster and will presumably have full control to allocate Judges to these Permanent Benches. Hence, the apprehension that the establishment of Permanent Regional Benches will affect the unitary character of the Supreme Court is unfounded," Wilson said..The Committee stated that regional benches may be a solution to the overflowing caseload of the judiciary and to reduce the litigation cost to the common man.Further, it also opined that the Delhi-centric Supreme Court is a big hurdle for litigants coming from far-flung areas of the country given language problems, cost of litigation, travel etc..Accordingly, the Committee took the view that the Supreme Court may invoke Article 130 of the Constitution for establishing its regional benches at four or five locations in the country. While Constitutional matters can be decided in Delhi, appellate matters can be determined by the regional benches, it was suggested. The decisions made by these benches would be considered conclusive, thereby preventing them from being perceived as an additional judicial layer..[Read Report]