Our Correspondent
President Pranab Mukherjee today said that Justice should be speedy, accessible and affordable. Addressing the fourth Retreat of Supreme Court Judges at National Judicial Academy in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh today President Said: ‘ quick delivery of justice is sine qua non for efficient jurisprudence. Justice delayed is justice denied. Justice should be speedy, accessible and affordable.
President lamented that Courts have become overburdened on account of the large number of cases pending before them. “The pendency of cases is also dependent upon the number of vacancies in the courts”
The President said we have a written Constitution in India, which is a living document, not a relic cast in stone. It is a magna carta of socio-economic transformation.The Apex Court of India has continuously been interpreting the mandate for good governance enshrined in the Constitution on the altar of contemporary situations and challenges facing the country, whether due to global winds of change or from within.
“This has not been merely an exercise in interpretation of laws or legal order, much less an exercise in edifying jurisprudence; it has captured the ethos of our developing society as it has evolved from the colonial shackles to a social order replete with the essence of human dignity, of aspirations of a populace maturing into a sovereign, socialist, secular, democratic republic as mandated by the makers of our Constitution” he said .
President Pranab Mukherjee has said, judicial activism should not lead to dilution of the separation of powers, which is a constitutional scheme. He was He said, each organ of our democracy must function within its own sphere.
Mr. Mukherjee said, the exercise of powers by the executive and the legislature is subject to judicial review, however only check for the exercising of power by the judiciary is self imposed discipline and self restraint. The President emphasized the need of the speedy, accessible and affordable justice. He also expressed concern over pendency of cases in different courts. Mr. Mukherjee said, pending cases must be quickly cleared through multi-dimensional efforts. He said that for speedy justice, use of IT and e-governance can make a positive impact.
Addressing the Retreat, Chief Justice of Supreme Court T S Thakur spoke on the objectives of the Retreat. He said, the modern global challenges required modern solutions. Union Law Minister Sadanand Gowda said, the government is revising national litigation policy. He said, the steps are being taken to improve legal infrastructure. In his address, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan advised that the Lok Sabha and the state assembly elections should be held simultaneously.