- Home
- /
- Top Stories
- /
- 'Each Judge Has 15K-20K Matters' :...
'Each Judge Has 15K-20K Matters' : Supreme Court Expresses Concern At Allahabad HC Case Pendency; Stresses On Need To Fill Vacancies
Gursimran Kaur Bakshi
3 Feb 2025 8:41 PM IST
"The High Court has a sanctioned strength of 160 Judges but unfortunately is working today with a strength of 84 Judges."
The Supreme Court today disposed of a writ petition filed by 95-year-old petitioner seeking directions for the Allahabad High Court to take up her second Appeal pending since 2013 and decide the matter at the earliest. A bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan directed that the order passed in the present writ petition shall be treated as a representation addressed to the Chief...
The Supreme Court today disposed of a writ petition filed by 95-year-old petitioner seeking directions for the Allahabad High Court to take up her second Appeal pending since 2013 and decide the matter at the earliest.
A bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan directed that the order passed in the present writ petition shall be treated as a representation addressed to the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court in regards to matters pending for many decades in the High Court and pass an appropriate order in this regard on its administrative side.
The Supreme Court acknowledged that the High Court has been struggling to cope with the pending matters and the only way out is to take necessary steps at the earliest to fill up the vacancies by recommending suitable persons on the basis of pure merit and ability.
It noted:
"In last two months, we have come across many writ petitions filed by the litigants whose proceedings are pending before the High Court of Judicature at Allahabad past more than three decades seeking directions that the matter should be heard expeditiously by the High Court. There is no doubt that the High Court of Allahabad is flooded with litigation. We are informed that each Hon'ble Judge in the High Court has with him or her around 15000 to 20000 matters. The High Court has a sanctioned strength of 160 Judges but unfortunately is working today with a strength of 84 Judges. The litigants are eagerly waiting for their matters be taken up and decided.
The only way out is to take necessary steps at the earliest to fill-up the vacancies recommending suitable persons on the basis of pure merit and ability. Let this petition be treated as a representation addressed to the Hon'ble the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court. The Registry shall forward one copy of the Writ Petition along with this order to the Hon'ble the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court. Let the Hon'ble Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court look into the matter and pass an appropriate order in this regard on its administrative side."
Recently, the Supreme Court passed directions to enable the appointment of retired High Court judges as ad hoc judges to tackle the issue of case backlogs.
Case : Kamla Bai v High Court of Judicature at Allahabad
Citation : 2025 LiveLaw (SC) 152