Holistic judicial reforms on cards: Law Minister Moily

Holistic reforms to make India’s judicial system accountable, and responsive to litigants, were stressed by Veerappa Moily who took over as new Law and Justice Minister today.

"Judicial reforms cannot be partial, cannot be fragmented," asserted Moily, who has succeeded Hans Raj Bhardwaj, dropped from the United Progressive Alliance cabinet announced since the elections. "We have to go in for holistic reforms." Moily touched on a range of issues his Ministry faces from delays in justice, huge case backlogs, Judges Appointments to electoral reforms and rule of law. He acknowledged the need to quicken the pace of justice in courts.

Indian courts are saddled with 30 million plus cases pending before them, many for years and decades. Government experts have recommended quadrupling the judicial posts. Instead, courts have perennial vacancies.

But he said judicial reform was not so much a legal issue as that of governance. Indian judicial system, he claimed, was the world’s best.

Noting that government in India-- both Central and State-- has become the biggest litigant, Moily acknowledged the need to reduce such involvement in litigation to the extent possible.

"The solutions are simple," the former Chairman of India's second Administrative Reforms Commission told journalists, explaining that not all required Constitutional or substantial amendments.

He said there was need to carry out systemic reforms within the judiciary, outside the judiciary and in the administration of justice. For instance, introducing mobile forensic systems to improve investigative work des not require any legal reform.

Moily indicated he expected to take up where he had left off while resigning as 2nd ARC chief insofar as he would now be in a position to try to implement his findings.

In his report on Ethics in Governance Moily had highlighted norms the judiciary had adopted at the highest level more than a decade ago, but has yet to implement.

As Moily put it in his report, "Independence of the judiciary is inextricably linked with judicial ethics. An independent judiciary enjoying public confidence is a basic necessity of the rule of law.

Moily referred to a charter called the Restatement of Values of Judicial Life, or Judges Code of Conduct, unanimously adopted by India’s Supreme Court in its Full Court Meeting on May 7, 1997.

"Any conduct on the part of a Judge, which demonstrates a lack of integrity and dignity, will undermine the trust reposed in the judiciary by the citizens. The conduct of a Judge should, therefore, always be above reproach." The document contained basic norms of judicial service several of which are perceived to have been infringed in recent years sparking controversies.

The report emphasised that justice must not merely be done but also be seen to be done and the conduct of members of the higher judiciary must reaffirm the people’s faith in its impartiality.

"Any act of a Judge of the Supreme Court or a High Court, whether in official or personal capacity, which erodes the credibility of this perception has to be avoided." It also stressed Judges eschewing "close association with individual members of the Bar, particularly those who practise in the same court." It prescribed a Judge practising a degree of aloofness consistent with the dignity of his office and "not hear and decide a matter in which a member of his family, a close relation or a friend is concerned." It stressed that a Judge let his judgments speak for themselves, and not give interviews to media or enter into public debate on political matters or matters pending or likely to arise for judicial determination.

After assuming charge, Moily had a meeting with all senior Ministry officers, including Secretary T K Vishwanathan, and reviewed the status of various programmes and issues.