Department of Justice, Ministry of Law & Justice Issues Year Ender 2022 [Read Press Release]

The Department of Justice, Ministry of Law & Justice has issued a press release sharing the cardinal developments that took place in the year 2022.

The release celebrated three major developments.

The expansion of Tele-law to cover 1 lakh Gram Panchayats across 755 districts in 36 States and Union Territories

Pertinently, more than 52000 beneficiaries were reached out through 4200 awareness sessions, and nearly 17000 were provided with legal advice and consultation by a dedicated pool of Panel Lawyers through video/teleconferencing facilities under Tele-Law. To maximize outreach, Tele-Law on Wheels campaign was also rolled out where special Tele-Law branded Mobile Vans travelled in different parts of the country to spread the message of Tele-Law through playing of videos, radio jingle and distribution of Tele-Law leaflets.

Notably, out of the 800+ Lawyers engaged to provide pre-litigation advice, each district has been allocated with one panel lawyer positioned in the front offices at the district level through the legal services authorities.

Further, various campaigns have been rolled out viz., backlog clearance drive, SMS campaign and Selfie drive to reach the desired beneficiaries and maximize the delivery of tele-law service. As on 31st October, 2022, 25 lakh + beneficiaries have been provided with legal advice and consultation.

The appointment of 165 Judges in High Courts, which is the highest number of appointments made in a calendar year

The number of appointments per High Court was as follows: High Court of Allahabad (13), Andhra Pradesh (14), Bombay (19), Calcutta (16), Chhattisgarh (3), Delhi (17), Gauhati (2), Himachal Pradesh (2), Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh (4), Jharkhand (1), Karnataka (6), Kerala (1), Madhya Pradesh (6), Madras (4), Orissa (6), Patna (11), Punjab and Haryana (21), Rajasthan (2), Telangana (17).

38 Additional Judges were made permanent in High Courts, with the appointments per High Court being as follows: High Court of Allahabad (10), Bombay (4), Calcutta (6), Himachal Pradesh (1), Karnataka (3), Kerala (4), Madras (9), Manipur (1).

Further, the tenure of 01 Additional Judge in the High Court of Bombay and the High Court of Madras was extended.

Pertinently, Chief Justices were appointed in the High Courts of Gauhati, Himachal Pradesh, Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh, Karnataka, Madras, Telangana, Rajasthan and Uttarakhand.

The Digital Court initiative

The Digital Court initiative aims to enable the switch to paperless Courts by providing judges with access to Court records in digital form. It was part of the e-courts project launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 26.11.2022 during the Constitution Day celebrations at the Supreme Court of India.

The Delhi High Court has started 34 Digital Courts to hear cheque bounce cases under Section 138 of the NI Act.

The Press Release also revealed key information, data and statistics about the eCourts Mission Mode Project, the Scheme of Fast Track Special Courts, the launch of the Gram Nyayalaya online Portal, the National Mission for Justice Delivery and Legal Reforms and the Constitution Day Celebration, while also throwing light on the activities of the NALSA.

Click here to read the full Press Release