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| Diamond Jubilee of J&K High Court | | Disposal of PILs provide relief to state and society | | Judiciary along with Legislature and Executive form important pillars of a democratic set up. The history of judiciary is as old as the system of governance. It has existed in one form or the other from times immemorial. Various sources of history point to the existence of this institution in Jammu and Kashmir from early times though in a very crude form. With the advent of time, dispensation of justice came to be delegated and entrusted to the concerned authorities. The changes in the system of governance had a profound impact on this branch of administration and the posts of Dharmadhiyasha, Rajasithaniya, Setheya, Qazi, Mir Adal etc. were created to make its functioning efficient and its reach more encompassing.
Like in other parts of the world, administration of justice has been an inseparable part of governance in Jammu & Kashmir. In his famous work Rajtarangi, 12th century historian Kalhan has given detailed account of judicial system in ancient Kashmir. In ancient and medieval Kashmir, the king was repository of justice. The institutionalization of justice on modern lines in Jammu and Kashmir began with the accession to thrown of Maharaja Ranbir Singh who took keen interest in organizing justice system at the district and tehsil level. This is evident from the fact that Ranbir Penal Code was the first codified law in the princely states. In 1857, two Chief Judge Courts were set up at Srinagar and Jammu and with the passage of two decades the number of courts had risen to 25. In 1877, High Court was set up in the state. However, the High Court worked within the confines of and as a part of the Durbar. With coming into force of Code of Criminal Procedure in 1912, the High Court became the highest court of criminal appeals and revisions.
But the honour of a High Court, truly independent in all respects, headed by Chief Justice and comprising two puinse judges goes to 1928. Thus the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir has the distinction of being the first locally set up High Court in the country. The coming in force of Constitution Act of 1939 is an important land mark in the history of the state Judiciary while on September 10, 1943 Maharaja issued Letters Patent to the High Court. The jurisdiction of Supreme Court was extended to the Jammu and Kashmir with the promulgation of Constitution Order 1954 and the High Court was given powers to issue writs, directions and orders. However, the Supreme Court held a court at Srinagar to hear the pending appeals and thus Jammu and Kashmir has the distinction of being the only state in the country where this was done.
The evolution of the judicial system in the state continued with the passage of time. In 1957, the High Court was made a Court of Record
with powers to punish for its contempt. The setting up of district and sessions court in every district headquarter was introduced in 1964 and this step helped to a large extent to strengthen judicial system in the state.
The state legislature in accordance with the constitutional mandate passed an Act providing for separation of judiciary from the executive in 1967. This fulfilled the long cherished dream of an independent judiciary at all levels. The territorial jurisdiction of the High Court was enlarged through Article 226 of the Constitution of India to enable it to issue writs to any government or authority in any part of the country.
The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir has seen a metamorphosis during 75 years of its existence. It has made great strides both in strength and stature. The number of judges during these years has increased from three to 14. Great legal luminaries of the country have adorned the bench of the High Court from time to time. Eminent legal stalwarts appeared before the court and their assistance helped it to acquire a place of prominence in the legal system of the country. Apart from ensuring justice to the people and departments, the High Court has contributed significantly to the development of law and made valuable addition to the legal literature.
To meet the challenges accruing due to arrears, escalating litigation costs and delays in dispensation of justice, the High Court has braced itself and initiated several measures to take the bull by the horns and reinforce faith of people in the judicial system. During the last 9 months alone, the High Court has taken important steps to minimise the backlogs and ensure speedy and affordable justice to one and all.
A methodology has been adopted to cutback on cases related to family matters, payment of compensation in vehicular accident cases, termination and dismissal besides payment of salaries and wages, under trial prisoners and habeas corpus petitions etc. and these have been included in the priority litigation category. During last 9 months, about 15000 cases have been decided most of which belong to priority litigation. The aim is to clear the backlog and bring it to 5-year pendency level.
Another step aimed at meeting the challenges is strengthening of free legal aid and Lok Adalat mechanism. This frontal strategy has been adopted to respond to the huge pendencies as also exorbitant litigation costs. Two hundred Lok Adalats have been held during the past 9 months and 4000 cases decided. About Rs. 6.25 crore were awarded without leaving any chance of future litigation.
As a unique arrangement the officers of administration and relief machinery were involved to come to the rescue of the affectees of October 8, 2005 earth quake and provide relief to them. A few thousand
cases involving Rs. 25 crore were decided by the special Lok Adalats held in the earthquake-affected areas within a short span of 5 weeks. The best reward and recognition of this effort came from the President of India when during his visit to Uri he suggested organizing similar mobile courts in other parts of the country.
Similarly, land mark decisions were passed by the High Court while disposing off various Public Interest Litigations (PILs) that provided lot of relief to the people and helped in a big way to protect the interests of public, state and society. The handling of important PILs pertaining to protection and preservation of water bodies like Dal Lake, controlling air pollution, streamlining plying of traffic, removal of encroachments, upgrading of health services, etc. itself speak very high of the state judiciary and its capacity to deal with important public issues confidently and legally.
With a view to integrate the latest information and communication technology with the Judicial machinery, the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir is among the first few courts in the country to computerize all the district courts. All the subordinate courts at Jammu have also been computerized. This mechanism ensures that the litigants and lawyers monitor the progress of their cases on the website without actually visiting the court. Local Area Network (LAN) has been established in the Srinagar and Jammu wings of the High Court for the facility of the judges, lawyers and litigants.
The infrastructure development too has received due attention and projects worth Rs. 115 crore cleared during the current financial year. These include District Court complex Srinagar, block of High Court, Srinagar, lawyers chambers at Srinagar and Jammu besides Judicial Academy complex.
The need for continued training to judicial officers and officials has been emphasized time and again. The new challenges require that various components of judicial mechanism get equipped with new strategies. Accordingly, the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir was the first to establish a Judicial Officers Training Institute. In 2001, State Judicial Academy was established and it has organized three comprehensive programmes during last six months.
The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir which is celebrating its Diamond Jubilee on the completion of 75 years of its existence has made significant strides in various spheres of its operation during this period. The track record, infrastructural development and introduction of IT are ample proof of its functioning and one can hope that this institution will achieve greater heights in the times to come.
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