disadvantages of indian judiciary

The Indian judicial system is descended from British colonial rule, and many of its characteristics appear on the surface identical to those of British courts. This British system of law, however, was unsuited to the needs of the Indian people. Even the last colonial administrators of India so acknowledged in 1945, three years before India gained full independence. Though it has come a long way, the Indian judicial system still lacks the resources to meet the needs of India's more than 1 billion citizens.

Backlog of Cases

The Indian Supreme Court had almost 46,000 cases left to hear in December 2009. For lower, more local courts, that figure ballooned to more than 29 million cases. Minor corruption, limited staffing and an acute shortage of accomplished judges are among the reasons. In December 2009, the Law Commission of India said there were only 10 judges for every 1 million Indian citizens.

Complexity

For many rural Indians, the Indian legal codes and justice system are too heavily laden with complex jargon and arduous demands of time and money. Traditional methods of conflict resolution, called "panchayats" or "dharmasatra," were discarded during British colonial rule and never reclaimed after independence. These dispute-resolving mechanisms were inexpensive, required little specialized legal training, and worked in a cultural context that many Indians could understand. They are no longer part of the Indian judicial system.

The Mumbai Attacks Trial

The trial of the lone surviving gunman in the November 2008 Mumbai terror attacks, to many Indian critics, underscored some of the weaknesses in the Indian judicial system. The defendant, Mohammed Ajmal Amir, confessed midway through the trial, but the judge let the trial continue. No Indian lawyer wanted to represent Amir, and his counsel had to be replaced midway. Also, many said Amir's trial was expedited for political reasons.

Bureaucratic Battles

Lawyers, justices and journalists frequently fight in Indian courtrooms over access to information, the overzealous use of contempt-of-court laws, and endless allegations of bribery coming from almost every participant in the average court case. The process for removing bad judges from the bench is rarely successful. To allege bribery of a judge requires the written consent of the nation's chief judge, a historically unprecedented occurrence in India.

Read more: The Disadvantages of the Indian Judicial System | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/list_6593960_disadvantages-indian-judicial-system.html#ixzz1AqpfS3Y3