Excelsior Correspondent
SRINAGAR, Nov 30: Today, Justice Hrishikesh Roy, a Supreme Court Judge, officially opened the two-day North Zone-I Regional Conference titled “Court Dockets: Explosion & Exclusion” at SKICC, Srinagar. He was joined by esteemed fellow judges including Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia, Justice Rajesh Bindal, Justice N. Kotiswar Singh, Justice Tashi Rabstan, Chief Justice of the High Court of J&K and Ladakh, Justice Anirudhha Bose, Director of the National Judicial Academy, and Justice Sindhu Sharma, Chairperson of the Governing Committee for the J&K Judicial Academy.
The conference is hosted by the Jammu & Kashmir Judicial Academy in collaboration with the National Judicial Academy of Bhopal. Judges and judicial officers from the High Courts of Punjab & Haryana, Delhi, Allahabad, Uttarakhand, and Himachal Pradesh, in addition to those from the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, are also participating.
The inaugural session was graced by the presence of several distinguished guests, including Justice G. Raghuram, former Director of the National Judicial Academy, Justice Geeta Mittal, former Chief Justice of the High Court of J&K and Ladakh, Justice Trilok Singh Chauhan, Acting Chief Justice of the High Court of Himachal Pradesh, and Justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari, Acting Chief Justice of the High Court of Uttarakhand. Other notable attendees included Justice Atul Sreedharan, Justice Rajesh Oswal, Justice Vinod Chatterji Koul, Justice Puneet Gupta, Justice Javed Iqbal Wani, Justice Mohammad Akram Chowdhary, Justice Rahul Bharti, Justice Moksha Khajuria Kazmi, Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal, Justice Rajesh Shekhri, and Justice Mohammad Yousuf Wani.
The inaugural ceremony also welcomed the Senior Additional Advocate General, Deputy Solicitor General of India, prominent advocates, civil administration and police officials, Registrar General Shahzad Azeem, various judicial officers, law students, faculty members, and young girls from the Pareesha Children Home, Harwan.
In his opening remarks, Justice Hrishikesh Roy highlighted that the overwhelming number of cases is hindering the delivery of quality judgments and timely justice, particularly impacting individual liberties. He noted the significant challenges posed by this ‘docket explosion’ in a developing nation like India, which hosts millions of pending cases across its legal system. He advocated for the adoption of Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) methods as a viable solution to these challenges.
Justice Anirudhha Bose, the Director of the National Judicial Academy in Bhopal, addressed concerns regarding the backlog of cases in courts, which he noted deters the public from seeking judicial assistance. He expressed optimism that this conference would yield insights on addressing docket explosion while tackling exclusion and ensuring equitable access to justice for all.
Welcoming attendees, Justice Tashi Rabstan emphasized two pressing issues: the mounting volume of cases creating an overwhelming backlog for courts, and the challenge of ensuring access to justice for marginalized groups, which threatens equity and fairness within the legal framework.
Justice Sindhu Sharma delivered the formal vote of thanks.
On the first day of the conference, three technical sessions were conducted. The first session was chaired by Justice Rajesh Bindal, with Justice G.S. Kulkarni serving as the resource person. Justice Kulkarni highlighted the critical role of ADR mechanisms in ensuring timely and effective justice delivery.
Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia and Justice Atul Sreedharan led the second technical session. Justice Dhulia underscored that access to justice must be viewed from a societal perspective, drawing attention to how individual judges’ personas can also affect this access. Justice Atul Sreedharan presented a detailed analysis of the causes and implications of docket explosion and exclusion, praising the independence and efficiency of Judicial Officers in J&K and Ladakh.
The third technical session, chaired by Justice N. Kotiswar Singh, engaged Justice Gita Mittal and Justice G. Raghuram as resource persons. Justice Mittal’s presentation emphasized the media’s crucial role in shaping public perception of justice issues, while also cautioning against the detrimental effects of media trials occurring before official proceedings. Justice Raghuram explored the relationship between the judiciary and both traditional and social media amidst a digital landscape.
Sonia Gupta, Director of the J&K Judicial Academy, facilitated the proceedings of the inaugural session and coordinated the technical discussions on the first day of the conference.
