Nothing can be more important than filling up judicial vacancies across country, says SC

Nothing can be more important than filling up huge vacancies of judicial officers in trial courts across the country, the Supreme Court said on Tuesday while monitoring the progress made by all 24 High Courts and 36 states and UTs.

The apex court on October 22 last year had, on its own, taken note of over 5,000 vacant posts of judicial officers in lower courts and sought information from all the high courts, states and Union Territories (UTs).

Law Secretaries of 29 states and seven UTs and the Registrar Generals (RGs) of 24 High Courts showed up on Tuesday in the crowded courtroom, presided over by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi, in pursuance of an earlier order asking them to apprise the top court of the fresh status of processes undertaken by them to fill up the vacancies of judicial officers as on June 30.

Delineating the future course of action to tackle the problem, the bench, also comprising Justices Deepak Gupta and Aniruddha Bose, said, "Nothing can be more important then this (judicial vacancy). If required, we will deal with this case whole day".

The bench, while summoning the Law Secretaries and RGs of the High Courts, had directed them to "indicate the total strength of each cadre; the number of posts in different cadres actually filled up; the number of posts in each cadre lying vacant; the number of posts in respect of which selection is presently going on and the stage of the said process of selection, and finally, the number of posts in different cadres for which the process of selection is yet to be initiated".

At the outset, the bench took up vacancies of judicial officers in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, West Bengal, Chhattisgarh, Delhi and the North-Eastern states.

The states and the RGs of High Courts came prepared with the responses to the queries of the apex court on various aspects of appointment of judicial officers and said that they are adhering to the time schedule.

The Chief Justice asked some of the states that they should complete the task ahead of the time schedule.

Senior advocate Shyam Divan, who is assisting the court as an amicus curiae, said: "Broadly, the Supreme Court's order passed in the Malik Mazhar Sultan case (on time-line for appointment of judicial officers) has been complied with by the states."