Process is the Punishment in our Criminal Justice System, needs overhauling: CJI Ramana at 18th ILS Meet

The Chief Justice of India, NV Ramana while addressing the gathering at 18th All India Legal Service Meet in Jaipur, expressed concern on the shortcomings of Criminal Justice System in India and recognized that it is mired with the issue of process being the punishment.

Calling for a 'holestic plan of action', the CJI remarked:

"But, much needs to be done. The challenges are huge. In our criminal justice system, the process is the punishment. From hasty indiscriminate arrests, to difficulty in obtaining bail, the process leading to the prolonged incarceration of undertrials needs urgent attention."

"We need a holistic plan of action, to increase the efficiency of the administration of criminal justice. Training and sensitization of the police and modernization of the prison system is one facet of improving the administration of criminal justice. NALSA and legal service authorities need to focus on the above issues to determine how best they can help."

He also pointed out the problem with Civil Courts as well.

"Even when it comes to civil cases, particularly petty civil disputes and family disputes, they can be resolved by alternate dispute resolution methods. By using different services of NALSA, from Lok Adalats to mediation, justice seekers can achieve inexpensive and expeditious resolution of their disputes. The same will also reduce the burden on the Courts," he said.

The Chief Justice was attending the inaugral ceremony to may new initiatives by NALSA such as the E-prisons portal, e-Mulakat etc. He expressed his admiration for different initiatives for the
benefit of the prisoners that have been launched.

"In India we have 6.1 lakh prisoners in 1378 prisons. They are indeed one of the most vulnerable sections of our society. Prisons are black boxes. Prisoners are often unseen, unheard citizens. Prisons
have different impacts on different categories of prisoners, particularly those belonging to marginalised communities."

Defining the new initiatives under the E-prisons portal as a step towards transparency and expediency, keeping the interests of the prisoner at the core, the CJI added that now all relevant information
regarding an inmate, such as the details of their incarceration and pending court cases, are just a click away.

Mentitioning how prolonged separation from family and society can have a detrimental impact on the mental health and socialisation of an inmate, he explained the e-Mulakat initiative.

"Through this initiative, the families and well- wishers of inmates can be in constant touch with them with ease. The eParole application is another great initiative through which inmates can have continuity of social existence and interaction."

CJI also shed light on the New Legal Aid cases Management portal & Mobile app which, he claimed, 'would be of great assistance to the legal aid beneficiary, as they will be sharing a common platform with the legal aid lawyer.'

"This app will not only increase the efficiency of case management, but will also lead to accountability and transparency as to the handling of the case," he said.

Speaking about NALSA's NALSA Online Mediation, the Chief Justice told the gathering that the portal for commercial Mediation is the first Online Dispute Resolution (ODR) platform in the Government Sector.

"Now, through the NALSA online mediation portal, various disputes can be resolved through ODR in an inexpensive, and time bound, manner."

At this juncture, he praised the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee for also doing a stellar job in making its services available at the grassroots level, by adopting modern technology.

CJI NV Ramana was clearly perplexed to see multiple, purposeful intiative launch by NALSA.

"I am very happy that we are launching several new schemes. However, I think it is time to revaluate, take stock and determine whether the intended results are being achieved through the schemes already launched. Now, it is high time we focus on the quality of our services. After all, the work done by NALSA is a Constitutional responsibility. The interventions should result in satisfactory positive outcomes. It is imperative to modernise and streamline the existing services by adopting technology."

Congratulating NALSA for successfully conducted nation- wide awareness campaigns, the Top Judge called it 'just the beginings'

"We must be ready with the infrastructure to accommodate the new justice seekers. We need to co-opt service-oriented youngsters for improving the quality of socio- legal services within the criminal justice system."

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