By Brig Ian da Costa
For some years there has been a murmur that the functioning of Courts, the Seat of Justice leaves much to be desired. This is especially at the level of the Lower Courts and the Quasi Judicial Courts. People complain that there is an unholy nexus between the judges and some lawyers. Besides, the Government Officials also get themselves involved as they are tempted by the existing corrupt regime to do so. The general public, are also to blame as they have not displayed the courage to stand up and complain when injustice is meted out to them. Lawyers are also playing the game in getting adjournments on frivolous grounds to make the case drag on and on, without the end of the tunnel in sight. They are afraid of being booked for contempt of court. The longer the case dangles on, the more will the lawyers earn? The one who suffers is the clients. They have to shell out hefty fees to all concerned. And yet there is very little progress.
The world has travelled rapidly in the last few decades, but, our judicial authorities seem to live in a world of their own. They remain unconcerned and unmoved by the plight of the litigants. The Army adopted a system long ago that when a letter was received, it had to be replied to within seven days. Failing which, an acknowledgement had to be sent, that the matter was under consideration and a reply can be expected within the next seven/ fourteen days. The higher Headquarters was due an explanation as to the cause of delay. But at present no such practice is prevalent in our Govt. offices. In the Army Higher HQ’s, take a dim view of such lapses as it is plain and simple inefficiency.
People who have litigation in the lower courts at times have to spend the evening of their lives in attending courts just to fill up the attendance and receive a fresh date for hearing. Should the judges be detailed on any other duty when they have cases to attend to? When I raised this question, before a Joint Mamlatdar, he suggested me point blank without any hesitation, “Brigadier why don’t you two compromise. You pay him a certain decent amount, as this case has been going on for a long time.” The observation was correct but, the suggestion was totally unacceptable to me. Army Officer accepting to bribe opponent in a Tenancy Court Case, would have been screaming headlines in the news papers the next day. But the media does not take this case. So we are caught between the Devil and the Deep Sea. The Govt. has done nothing to set this unfortunate tangle right by laying down rules to expedite cases and help the general public. Corruption has percolated to the marrow of our bones. For far too long, we the citizens of India have neglected our duties. It was our duty to raise our voices in unison against the sad state of affairs prevailing in our judicial system. Recently we have had a case where Justice Kode who sentenced Yakub Memon earlier for his heinous crime in the 1993 Mumbai blasts case, saying that Yakub should not be given the death sentence which he himself had awarded. Did he not have enough time earlier, to think over the sentence, that he had himself earlier pronounced? Isn’t this is a very sad and serious matter? No one seems to have taken any umbrage to such lapses at the right time. We Indians seem to raise an alarm only after the horses have bolted out of the stables. Is it nobody’s business to raise the alarm earlier? We need to wake up. We have a full fledged LAW ministry in every state and in the Center. Do they not keep a watch on all these happenings so that they can take appropriate action? Justice delayed, is justice denied. Many junior judges and quasi-judicial judges just give fresh dates, and postpone their hearings without sufficient cause after declaring an adjournment. Is this fair? Large sums of money and precious time is wasted on the transportation and fees for witnesses, lawyers, clients and the court staff. No wonder cases take decades to be concluded.
(Brig Ian Da Costa is a retired officer of the Indian defence forces and an Instructor at Officer’s Training School in Madras)
