In Brief
The Supreme Court examined long-standing delays in criminal cases involving serious charges (murder, rape, kidnapping, dacoity) where a writ petition had been pending for six years. The Court addressed the systemic problem of judicial arrears by adopting an interim method for determining required judge strength in district judiciaries. Rather than a simple disposal-rate formula, the Court endorsed a unit-based approach that accounts for case complexity and workload. High Courts must rationalize unit systems, collect real-time data, and coordinate with state governments to implement infrastructure and staffing improvements within three months, using Fourteenth Finance Commission allocations to clear the backlog within five years and prevent future arrears.
The lawyer headnote and full judgment text are available to registered users.