(a) whether the Government is committed to double the number of courts in the country;
(b) if so, the number of new courts set up in the country during the last three years, State-wise;
(c) the time by which the Government proposes to fill up the vacant posts of new judicial officials / judges in the newly set up courts; and
(d) the number of such courts proposed to be set up in Maharashtra?
ANSWER
MINISTER OF STATE FOR LAW AND JUSTICE AND CORPORATE AFFAIRS
(SHRI P. P. CHAUDHARY)
(a) & (b) : The new courts at District and below District / Subordinate (Tehsil / Taluka) level are established by the respective State Governments in consultation with the concerned High Courts. As per information made available by High Courts and State Governments, sanctioned strength of Judicial Officers of District / Subordinate Courts has increased from 20,214 in the year 2014 to 22,644 in the year, 2018. The State-wise details of sanctioned strength of Judicial Officers of District / Subordinate Courts in the years 2014 and 2018 are given in a Statement at Annexure-I.
Judges of Supreme Court of India are appointed under Article 124 (2) of the Constitution of India and the Judges of High Courts are appointed under Articles 217 (1) and 224 of the Constitution of India. As per the provision in the existing Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) for appointment of Judges of Supreme Court and High Courts, the proposals are initiated by the Chief Justice of India after consultation with the Collegium of Supreme Court and the Chief Justice of the High Court after consultation with the Collegium of the High Court respectively, for filling up of vacancies of Judges in the Supreme Court and related High Courts. The details of vacancies of Judges in the Supreme Court and High Courts are given in Annexure-II.
(c) : As per the Constitutional framework, the selection and appointment of judges in subordinate courts is the responsibility of State Governments and the High Courts concerned. In so far as recruitment of judicial officers in the States is concerned, respective High Courts do it in certain States, whereas the High Courts do it in consultation with the State Public Service Commissions in other States. 0
Filling up of vacancies in the Supreme Court and the High Courts is a continuous and collaborative process between the Executive and the Judiciary. It requires consultation and approval from various Constitutional Authorities. Initiation of proposal for appointment of Judges in the Supreme Court vests with the Chief Justice of India, while initiation of proposals for appointment of Judges in the High Courts vests with the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court. While every effort is made to fill up the existing vacancies expeditiously, vacancies in High Courts keep on arising on account of retirement, resignation or elevation of Judges (to the Supreme Court) and also due to increase in the strength of Judges.
(d) : As per the information made available by Bombay High Court, the number of new Courts proposed to be established in the State of Maharashtra is 867.
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Annexure-I
Statement referred to Lok Sabha Un-Starred Question No. 2491 dated 26th December, 2018 regarding Number of Courts in the Country.
Sanctioned Strength of Judicial Officers in District and Subordinate Courts in the years 2014 and 2018.
Sl. No States Sanctioned Strength as on 31.12.2014 Sanctioned Strength as on 30.09.2018
1 Andhra Pradesh & Telangana 1034 987
2 Arunachal Pradesh 16 30
3 Assam 403 430
4 Bihar 1670 1845
5 Chhattisgarh 354 452
6 Goa 52 50
7 Gujarat 1963 1506
8 Haryana 644 651
9 Himachal Pradesh 146 159
10 Jammu & Kashmir 244 310
11 Jharkhand 578 676
12 Karnataka 1085 1307
13 Kerala & Lakshadweep 447 *499
14 Madhya Pradesh 1460 1872
15 Maharashtra 2072 **2141
16 Manipur 40 55
17 Meghalaya 55 97
18 Mizoram 67 67
19 Nagaland 27 33
20 Orissa 690 911
21 Punjab 672 674
22 Rajasthan 1145 1337
23 Sikkim 18 23
24 Tamil Nadu 997 *1143
25 Tripura 104 115
26 Uttar Pradesh 2097 3225
27 Uttarakhand 289 293
28 West Bengal and A & N Island 994 1024
29 Chandigarh 30 30
30 D & N Haveli and Daman & Diu 7 7
31 Delhi 793 799
32 Pondicherry 21 26
Total 20,214
22,774
* as on 30.06.2018
** as on 07.12.2018
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Annexure – II
Statement referred to Lok Sabha Un-Starred Question No. 2491 dated 26th December, 2018 regarding Number of Courts in the Country.
Vacancies of Judges in the Supreme Court and various High Courts as on 17.12.2018
Sr. No. Name of the Court Vacancies of Judges as on 17.12.2018.
1. Supreme Court of India 4
Sr. No. Name of the High Court Vacancies of Judges as on 17.12.2018.
1. Allahabad High Court 51
2. Calcutta High Court 35
3. Karnataka High Court 29
4. Punjab & Haryana High Court 30
5. High Court of Telengana and Andhra Pradesh 34
6. Bombay High Court 23
7. Delhi High Court 21
8. Gujarat High Court 23
9. Patna High Court 25
10. Madhya Pradesh High Court 18
11. Madras High Court 14
12. Rajasthan High Court 25
13. Kerala High Court 09
14. Orissa High Court 13
15. Chhattisgarh High Court 07
16. Jharkhand High Court 06
17. Guahati High Court 05
18. Jammu and Kashmir High Court 08
19. Himachal Pradesh High Court 05
20. Manipur High Court 02
21. Tripura High Court 01
22. Meghalaya High Court 01
23. Uttarakhand High Court 02
24. Sikkim High Court 00
Total 387