The Allahabad High Court observed that while delay in justice had shaped public perception of courts, the huge pendency of criminal cases was mainly due to failures of the state government and the police. | Photo credit: The Hindu
Referring to the famous Bollywood film dialogue”Tarikh pe Tarikh(date after date), the Allahabad High Court recently observed that while delay in justice had shaped public perception of the courts, the huge pendency of criminal cases was mainly due to failures of the state government and the police, not just judicial officials.
Justice Arun Kumar Deshwal, in his May 7 order, noted that many young and committed judicial officers were unable to function effectively due to severe shortage of staff, lack of police cooperation in executing summons and court orders, and delays in forensic reports.
The observations came while hearing a bail plea in a murder case in which investigators did not look for DNA matches to blood found on a recovered screwdriver. Taking serious note of the non-compliance, the court summoned the Director General of Police (DGP), Principal Secretary (Home) and Director of Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL).
During the hearing, the FSL director informed the court that only eight of the 12 forensic laboratories in Uttar Pradesh had DNA profiling facilities and that the laboratories suffered from a shortage of personnel and modern equipment. The court was also told that the FSL operated under the police department, which limited its administrative and financial autonomy.
“…the main reason for cases being pending in the district courts is not the capacity of the judicial officers but shortage of staff, non-execution of judicial process by the police and delays as well as incomplete reporting by the FSL. Therefore, it is the state government and the police that are primarily responsible for the handling of criminal cases in the district courts even as the social media and other common people blame the district judiciary for not resolving their cases,” the court said.
‘They became parliamentarians, MLAs’
Citing a report by the Association for Democratic Reforms, the court said that because they took advantage of the pendency of criminal cases, many criminals continued to repeat the crimes again and again without any fear, and even many of them also became deputies, parliamentarians and even ministers.
The Court also expressed concern about the security of judicial officials, stating that judges often faced intimidation from criminals and, unlike Punjab and Haryana, district judges in Uttar Pradesh did not routinely have personal security officers.
To address the systemic shortcomings, the court issued several directions, including filling vacancies in forensic laboratories within one year, improving forensic infrastructure, training police personnel in evidence collection, strengthening staffing of district courts and considering the autonomous status of the FSL under the Home Department.
DGP Rajeev Krishna, who was present at the hearing through video conferencing, was also directed to ensure stricter compliance in execution of judicial processes, mandate DNA match inquiries in relevant investigations and promote digital systems such as e-summons, e-court orders and AI-based voice-to-text recording of witness statements.
The court eventually rejected the accused’s bail plea, citing call records, recovery of the victim’s blood-stained gun and e-rickshaw that linked him to the crime.
Published – May 11, 2026 08:39 pm IST