5,850 posts of judge in district courts across India vacant

Satya Prakash

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New Delhi, December 26

Close to 6,000 posts of judges in district courts across the country remain vacant even as pendency of cases have crossed 4.5 crore.

As on December 19, there were 19,192 judges in subordinate courts against the sanctioned strength of 25,042, while 5,850 posts remained vacant, the Centre told Parliament during the recent winter session of the Parliament.

Maximum number of vacancies in subordinate courts are in Uttar Pradesh, where 1,164 of the total 3,638 posts of judges in district courts await appointment, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju had said in a written reply to a question. Bihar, which has a sanctioned strength of 2,016 judges, has 665 vacancies, Madhya Pradesh 497 (against the sanctioned strength of 2,021), Gujarat 428 (1,582), Rajasthan 331 (1,587), Tamil Nadu 272 (1,340), Punjab 208 (797), Delhi 203 (884), Haryana 307 (772), Himachal Pradesh 14 (179), Jammu and Kashmir 91 (314) and Ladakh eight (17).

Chandigarh (30), Daman and Diu (4) and Lakshadweep (3) have no vacancies in district courts.

“Under Article 235 of the Constitution, the administrative control over the members of district and subordinate judiciary in the states vests with the high court concerned. Hence, in so far as recruitment of judicial officers in the states is concerned, respective high courts do it in certain states, whereas in other states, the high courts do it in consultation with the State Public Service Commissions. The Centre has no direct role in the matter,” Rijiju had said.

“Vacancies in subordinate judiciary are to be filled up every year in accordance with the time schedule prescribed by the Supreme Court,” he added.

Highest in UP

Maximum number of vacancies in subordinate courts are in Uttar Pradesh, where 1,164 of the total 3,638 posts of judges in district courts await appointment, Law Minister Kiren Rijiju had said in a written reply to a question during the recent Parliaments session.