Question : Shortage of Judges

(a) the details of the number of lower courts and high courts functioning across the country, State / UT-wise including West Bengal and Kerala;
(b) the details of the number of Judges working in these courts along with the judges to cases ratio, at present;
(c) the details of the sanctioned strength of the Judges in courts across the country;
(d) whether there is any difference between the sanctioned strength and the actual strength;
(e) if so, the steps taken/being taken by the Government to bridge this gap;
(f) whether the Government proposes to establish more courts and appoint more Judges in various courts; and
(g) if so, the details thereof and the time by which the vacant posts of Judges in proportion to the number of cases are likely to be filled in the country?

ANSWER

MINISTER OF STATE FOR LAW AND JUSTICE AND CORPORATE AFFAIRS
(SHRI P. P. CHAUDHARY)

(a) to (d): The sanctioned and working strength of 24 High Courts in the country are 1,079 and 676 respectively. As per information made available by High Courts and State Governments, the State / UT - wise details of sanctioned / working strength and vacancies of Judicial Officers of District and Subordinate Courts in the country are given in Statement at Annexure. On the basis of available information, the judge-case ratio in the District and Subordinate Courts of the country is calculated to be 1175 cases per judge.

(e) to (g) : The new courts at District and below District / Subordinate level are established by the respective State Governments in consultation with the concerned High Courts and the Union Government doesn’t have a role in establishing new courts at district / subordinate level . As per the Constitution, the selection and appointment of judges in subordinate courts is the responsibility of State Governments and the High Courts concerned. The Supreme Court, through a judicial order in Malik Mazhar case, has devised a process and time frame to be followed for the filling up of vacancies in subordinate judiciary. This order of January 2007 by the Supreme Court stipulates that the process for recruitment of judges in the subordinate courts would commence on 31st March of a calendar year and end by 31st October of the same year. The Supreme Court has permitted State Governments / High Courts for variations in the time schedule in case of any difficulty based on the peculiar geographical and climatic conditions in the State or other relevant conditions. The Union Government does not have a role under the Constitution in the selection and appointment of judicial officers in District / subordinate judiciary.
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Annexure
Statement referred to Lok Sabha Unstarred Question No. 739 for reply on 07.02.2018

State / UT wise details of Sanctioned / Working Strength and Vacancies of Judicial Officers in District and Subordinate Courts
Sl. No Name of States/UTs Sanctioned Strength Working Strength Vacancies
1 Andhra Pradesh &Telangana** 987 873 114
2 Arunachal Pradesh 28 17 11
3 Assam 428 352 76
4 Bihar 1828 993 835
5 Chhattisgarh 398 335 63
6 Goa 55 43 12
7 Gujarat 1496 1121 375
8 Haryana 645 496 149
9 Himachal Pradesh 159 148 11
10 Jammu & Kashmir 253 224 29
11 Jharkhand 672 419 253
12 Karnataka 1303 976 327
13 Kerala*** 535 455 80
14 Madhya Pradesh 2021 1293 728
15 Maharashtra 2097 1930 167
16 Manipur 49 40 09
17 Meghalaya 97 39 58
18 Mizoram 63 46 17
19 Nagaland 34 22 12
20 Orissa 862 658 204
21 Punjab 674 538 136
22 Rajasthan 1225 1122 103
23 Sikkim 23 18 5
24 Tamil Nadu* 1257 916 341
25 Tripura 107 76 31
26 Uttar Pradesh 3204 1856 1348
27 Uttarakhand*** 291 231 60
28 West Bengal 956 916 40
29 A & N Island 11 11 0
30 Chandigarh 30 30 0
31 D & N Haveli and Daman & Diu 7 7 0
32 Delhi 799 482 317
33 Lakshadweep 3 2 1
34 Pondicherry 25 22 03
Total 22622
16707
5915

* as on 7.11.2017 / **as on 31.10.2017 / *** as on 30.11.2017