Sharing stage with Law Minister, CJI Ramana reminds him of judicial infrastructure

New Delhi, Oct 23: Chief Justice N V Ramana raised concerns over the judicial infrastructure today at event that was also attended by Law Minister, Kiren Rijiju. He urged the law minister to make sure that the proposal to set up a National Judicial Infrastructure Authority is taken up in the winter session of parliament.

"Judicial infrastructure for courts in India has always been an afterthought. It is because of this mindset that courts in India still operate with dilapidated structures, making it difficult to perform effectively,"the CJI said.

Only 5 per cent of the court complexes have basic medical aid and 26 per cent do not have separate toilets for women. 16 per cent of the courts do not even have toilets for men, he said.

He further added that nearly 50 per cent of the court complexes do not have a library while 46 per cent do not have the facility to purify water. I have sent the proposal to the Law Minister. I am hoping for a positive response soon and that the minister will expedite the process.

The event was held in Aurangabad and was attended by Chief Minister of Maharashtra Uddhav Thackeray.

"Without adequate infrastructure for courts, we cannot aspire to fill this gap. The infrastructure of courts is important for improving access to justice and to meet the growing demands of the public. It's baffling to note that the improvement and maintenance of judicial infrastructure is still being carried out in an ad-hoc and unplanned manner. The financial autonomy of the Judiciary is integral."