The Chief Judicial Magistrate court in Assam's Chirang district achieved a rare feat by clearing all pending cases by the end of 2024, news agency ANI reported.
In a country where as per the National Judicial Data Grid (NJDG) more than 4.5 crore cases are pending in district and subordinate courts alone, this Chirang court achieved zero pendency.
This hints at a victory over the popular "tarikh pe tarikh" syndrome, coined from an iconic dialogue from the Bollywood film 'Damini', which indicates the long delays in court hearings. However, this is a reality that has plagued the Indian judicial system as well.
Nandita Basumatari, Public Prosecutor at Chirang District Court, told ANI that the CJM court disposed of all pending cases as of December 31, 2024.
‘Zero pendency’
She said that at the beginning of last year, there were 143 cases in the court and as the year progressed, 687 more cases were added. By the year's end, all 830 cases were disposed of, she added.
"Pendency as of December 31, 2024 was zero. Hence the percentage of disposal is 100 percent," Basumatari said.
Additionally, the conviction rate in Assam from January to November 2024 stood at 22.68 per cent, while that of Chirang district from January to December 2024 was at 23.29 per cent.
{{/usCountry}}Additionally, the conviction rate in Assam from January to November 2024 stood at 22.68 per cent, while that of Chirang district from January to December 2024 was at 23.29 per cent.
{{/usCountry}}The district's conviction rate for December alone was recorded at 26.89 per cent.
Basumatari, however, said that achieving this zero pendency feat would have been impossible with the cooperation of prosecution and defence lawyers, police, the BAR association of Chirag, and the court staff.
Earlier in December, Assam chief minister Himanta Biswa Sarma had said that the state was on track to catch up with the national conviction rate of over 50 per cent.
"The conviction rate was as low as 5 per cent when I took charge as the home minister. Today, it has gone up to 23 per cent. I am of the view that we will soon touch 30 per cent," Sarma had told reporters.
He said that Assam will be able to touch the national conviction rate in the next two to three years if things go as planned. "The situation has changed, but we were so behind that catching up with the national average is a very big task. But we are on the right track and we will reach it," Sarma added.
The Assam CM had also said that his government had undertaken several significant initiatives, as a result of which the judicial infrastructure in the state has witnessed remarkable growth.
Sarma noted that POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences) courts have been established in 17 districts, adding that plans were underway for a dedicated commercial court in Guwahati and a special NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances) court.
(With inputs from ANI, PTI)