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New Delhi : The Vice President of India M Venkaiah Naidu on December 8, 2019, called for immediate and collective efforts by all stakeholders – the government, bar, and the bench to reduce the heavy pendency of court cases in the country. Delivering the Virendra Bhatia Memorial Lecture on Pillars of Democracy in New Delhi, Naidu said “there can not be instant justice but there can not be constant delays either.” Otherwise people become restive and try to take law into their hands, he added.
To make judicial process more people friendly, Naidu called for undertaking court proceedings in local languages so that people can understand it. He also suggested that the Supreme Court (SC) should have 2-3 benches across India. “No constitutional amendment is required for such a move,” he said and added that at present people have to come to Delhi from all over India to file their cases. “They have to stay for many days in Delhi and it is expensive,” he added, according to a PIB release.
The Vice President also opined that there is a need to decide upon the certain category of cases in time-bound manner such as the election petitions and criminal cases against sitting MPs and MLAs. He also called upon the presiding officers of legislative bodies to decide on the disqualification proceedings under anti-defection law in a time-bound manner. “Judiciary should also give priority to such cases,” he stressed. Naidu expressed concerns that any delays in justice delivery in such cases erode public confidence in the judicial and legislative bodies.
Naidu said that an efficient, transparent, accessible, and affordable judicial system is a key touchstone of good governance. It can improve ease of business as well as ease of living. Commenting of the functioning of the legislature, the Vice President said that a general perception is building up that the quality of debates in Parliament and State legislature has been declining. He appealed everyone in legislature to introspect to make constructive contributions for the welfare of society. “There is right to protest in democracy but not for obstructionism,” he said.. He asked the executive to give priority to the oppressed and to those living on the margins of society.
Mentioning the four pillars of democracy- the Legislature, Executive, Judiciary and Media, Naidu said that each pillar must act within its domain but not lose sight of the larger picture.“ The strength of a democracy depends on the strength of each pillar and the way pillars complement each other. Any shaky pillar weakens the democratic structure,” he said.
Recalling Virendra Bhatia’s contributions to nation as a practising lawyer and as the member of Rajya Sabha, Naidu said that the former had the rare distinction of holding all three important posts in the State of Uttar Pradesh namely- Advocate General of U.P., Chairman Bar Council of UP,. and the President of the High Court Oudh Bar Association on four occasions.