... is justice denied. And denied for more than ten years in more than 650,000 cases that are pending in the country's High Courts. The number of cases pending for between five and ten years is almost as high, at around 630,000, while the total number of pending cases is a whopping 3.6 million. While the procedure for deciding cases may be a culprit as well, the crux of the problem is the over-worked judges, given the huge vacancies. There are at present around 20 per cent vacancies in the number of judges in the High Courts. Even more interesting, the Chief Justices of various High Courts, according to a reply to a parliament question, have given their recommendations for the appointment of just 60 judges of the 139 vacancies.
