New Delhi: The Supreme Court has directed all 25 high courts in India to include specific dates for reserving, pronouncing, and uploading judgments in certified copies, addressing delays in verdict pronouncements by certain judges.
A bench comprising Justice Surya Kant and Justice N Kotiswar Singh instructed high courts to revise their current formats within four weeks to ensure compliance. The courts have also been asked to clarify whether only the operative part of a judgment is pronounced, with full reasons to follow within five days, or if the complete judgment has been delivered. The matter is listed for further hearing on November 10.
The top court has been hearing petitions highlighting that judgments in several cases remain unpronounced for years, despite completion of arguments. Previously, it had requested high courts to provide data on pending judgments and those pronounced after a cut-off date, including reservation dates and online publication details.
The order followed a report by amicus curiae Fauzia Shakil, who noted that Kerala and Patna high courts had yet to submit complete information, while 11 high courts provided only pronouncement and uploading dates without reservation dates.
The Supreme Court asked Shakil to develop a uniform reporting format for all high courts and directed the courts to furnish any additional information within four weeks to ensure standardised tracking of judgments.
