Judiciary in India: Its Strength and Weakness

India was ruled by the British for a very long time and that is a primary reason why the Indian judiciary has so much influence from the British laws. After India got its independence, there was a need to pen down the laws, rules and regulations that the Indian citizens needed to follow in order to maintain a proper life. That is why the Indian Constitution was created and it was the rule book for India. Be it the penalty for a crime, or the code of conduct in the court rooms, the Constitution mentions everything specifically about the Indian judiciary.

Now, there are a few things that are specific about the Judiciary in India. Firstly, it is independent of the legislature and the executive body of the Indian government. To put it simply, no other office can influence the decision or the actions of the legal system. That means, that even if it is a minister who is guilty of a crime, he/she will be tried in the court without any exception. Then, there is also a hierarchy about the courts in this system. Right on top is the Supreme Court that is the ultimate place for an appeal. When all other courts have announced their decision and people are still not satisfied, they appear before this court. Next come the high court in each state followed by the district courts. People present all sorts of problems that they may have before the courts. Be it land dispute, family problems like divorces, theft and burglary, or even murder, the Indian courts are equipped to handle everything.

In spite of being a well knit system, there are quite a few problems of the Indian law and judiciary. The main problem is the number of pending cases. Probably owing to the population, there are more cases in proportion to the number of courts. In some places, the decision is so delayed that a person convicted for a crime was sentenced 13 years after the case went to court. Due to the overwhelming number of cases, there are delays in decisions and that is what makes the process problematic. As one would say justice delayed is justice denied, this is the situation in most cases. Then again, due to the influence of the British rules that are quite old, criminals find many loop holes. For example if a boy under 18 molests or rapes a woman, he is not given capital sentence because he is a minor. However, the fact that adult crimes require adult punishments should be treated more seriously. With these amendments, the Indian judiciary can become more efficient and hand-on. A little improvement will go a long way to maintain peace and order in the country.

The Indian judiciary system is conventional, big and open to improvement. There are things that are already effective and things that need help.

Source by Niyati Khanna