‘Judiciary must not wait for another pandemic to…’: CJI DY Chandrachud
Speaking at a joint interactive session, justice Chandrachud pointed out that the pandemic ushered in various challenges to the access to justice.
The judiciary must not wait for another pandemic to evolve by adopting measures for judicial efficiency, emphasised Chief Justice of India (CJI) Dhananjaya Y Chandrachud on Friday, as he highlighted how Covid-19 prompted courts in India to adopt technology and modern tools for an effective delivery of justice.
“The pandemic forced the judicial system to adopt modern methods to impart justice. But our goal must lie in evolving our judicial institutions as a matter of principle, and not wait for another pandemic to take active decisions,” said the CJI at the 18th meeting of the chief justices of the Supreme Courts of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) member-states.
The Indian participation in the three-day event will include justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul and KM Joseph.
Speaking at a joint interactive session, justice Chandrachud pointed out that the pandemic ushered in various challenges to the access to justice, but the Supreme Court of India converted it into an opportunity to evolve. The apex court put in place a mechanism to ensure effective delivery of justice through a raft of initiatives such as e-courts, online hearings via video conferencing, standard operating procedure for urgent hearings, live streaming, and e-filing, he added.
“While the circumstances may have changed, the Supreme Court of India after having recognised the benefits derived from the adoption of measures for judicial efficiency, continues to foster the path of digitisation,” said the CJI.
Also read: Live transcription of Supreme Court proceedings introduced
He underlined that the incorporation of technology in the Indian judicial system has not only made the judicial institutions more accessible to its citizens, but has also acted as a tool to reach out to those who lack access to technology.
‘With virtual and hybrid hearings, advocates or litigants can appear before the courts from any part of the country to argue their case. The Supreme Court also has started live streaming of constitutional cases, utilising AI software for live transcription of hearings and translation of judgments in multiple languages. This shall ensure transparency in judicial proceedings,” justice Chandrachud said.
Since the pandemic, the CJI highlighted, district courts heard 16.5 million cases, high courts heard 7.58 million cases, while the Supreme Court heard 379,954 cases through video-conferencing.
According to a statement released by the Supreme Court administration, the SCO meeting will involve a joint interaction of the chief justices, chairpersons and judges from the member and observer states and representatives from SCO Secretariat and SCO RATS (Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure). The three-day event between March 10 and 12 will conclude with the signing of a joint statement.
“The meeting of the Presidents of the Supreme Courts allows for a constant dialogue on a wide range of issues, giving a new impetus to the development of relations and allowing the development of mechanisms for further improving the work of the judiciary,” the statement said.
