Cabinet Secretary TV Somanathan instructed ministries to withdraw old and useless cases.

At this time, a very important, far-reaching and big news related to administrative reforms is coming out from the Indian justice system and administrative corridors. The Central Government has now fully geared up to reduce the huge pile of cases pending in the courts of the country and the huge burden of cases. cabinet secretary TV. Somanathan (TV Somanathan) has issued a very strict and clear instruction to the secretaries of all the central ministries and departments of the country. The government has asked all departments to immediately identify all such old and pending cases related to their respective ministries which can now be withdrawn after the changes in the legal framework. The main objective of this major administrative step of the government is to rapidly reduce the number of cases pending in the courts and to stop wastage of government time and money on unnecessary legal battles. Let us know in detail what is the reason behind this decision of the government and in which departments the maximum number of cases are pending.

Big step taken after Public Trust Act and legal reforms

This latest step taken by the Central Government is part of a series of historic reforms taken primarily under the ‘Jan Vishwas Act’. Over the past few years, the government has decriminalized many minor offenses under various Central laws and either eliminated or rationalized outdated penal provisions.

Cabinet Secretary TV Somanathan has given strict instructions to all the concerned departments to complete this entire review process by the end of November. The government believes that since there have been major amendments in many laws and many old provisions have now become completely irrelevant, there is no justification in dragging the old cases going on in the courts on the basis of those laws. Such cases should be immediately withdrawn so that precious time of the judiciary and energy of the government machinery can be saved.

Huge pile of pending cases in Government of India ministries: A look at the figures

According to government data and details, currently associated with the Central Government More than 3.5 lakh cases for more than five years Are pending in the courts of the country. This huge figure also includes more than one lakh old legacy cases going on in 19 different High Courts alone.

According to a recent high-level presentation, the status of cases pending for more than 5 years in various departments of the Central Government is as follows:

• Department of Revenue: This department has the highest number of pending cases more than 5 years old i.e. 1.27 lakh Is beyond.

• Ministry of Railways: The number of cases related to railways is also not less, and here 45,583 cases are pending.

• Department of Military Affairs: Defense and military matters related to almost 32,464 cases Are going on in the courts.

• Ministry of Labor and Employment: Under this ministry approximately 28,822 cases Still pending.

• Ministry of Corporate Affairs: related to corporate sector 27,109 cases Are part of this long list.

Further, officials also say that even though the total number of cases pending in some other ministries like road transport, defense and telecom may appear slightly less, the financial stakes associated with these select cases are much larger and sensitive.

What is the effect of ‘Public Trust’ laws and review of cases

The central government has significantly simplified the country’s business and administrative laws through ‘Jan Vishwas’ amendments in different phases between 2023 and 2026. Under this, many such provisions were abolished which used to lead to registration of heavy criminal cases merely due to non-compliance on paper.

Now that the laws have changed, the Cabinet Secretary has cautioned all secretaries to sit with the legal advisors of their ministries and review and prepare a list of those cases which have now become legally redundant. Withdrawal of these cases from the courts will not only reduce the burden on the government machinery, but will also provide relief to common citizens and investors from unnecessary legal entanglements.

New Litigation Management Portal to be launched in November

The government is going to take a huge technological step to monitor these steps taken by ministries and departments in a transparent manner. Chairing a high-level meeting of all Union Secretaries, Cabinet Secretary TV Somanathan has announced that In this month (November), a dedicated ‘Litigation Management Portal’ Will be launched.

The launch of this state-of-the-art portal is expected to provide several major benefits:

1. Review and Monitoring: Through this portal, direct and digital monitoring of the functioning of Litigation Management Cells formed in various ministries can be done.

2. Disposal of old cases: This portal will prove to be extremely helpful in quick screening of old cases, status of appeals, scope of mediation and cases.

3. Regular Updates: All ministries and departments must mandatorily update the latest status of their pending cases on this portal from time to time, so that files do not remain pending at any level.

With this multi-dimensional and strict administrative approach of the government, it is completely clear that in the coming days, there will be a huge reduction in the number of government cases pending in the courts, which will prove to be a historic step towards administrative and judicial reforms.