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Showing contexts for: Docket explosion in Advocate General vs K. Ramkumar on 20 August, 1985Matching Fragments
5. The subject matter of contempt, the full text of the article published in Kerala Law Notes, dated 21-11-1984, Journal Section p. 21, is included at pp. 6 to 8 of the paper book (Ext. P1). It will be useful to quote the entire article:
Journal Priority in Posting of Cases K. Ramkumar Advocate Ernakulam.
Gone are the days when the High Court of Kerala could legitimately boast itself of the foremost among the High Courts in India in speedy disposal of cases. That Court is now facing an unprecedented docket explosion and the resultant huge backlog. Believe it or not, there are cases which are as old as 10 years pending in the High Court for disposal. The' situation if permitted to continue will make the High Court a totally ineffective instrument to many for whose benefit it is primarily established. Those waiting in the long and never ending queue for justice include dismissed workmen, pensioners seeking terminal benefits, tenants facing eviction, neglected wives and a host of like others who have serious problems and tales of woe to tell the High Court, Many of them appear to be giving up midway? throwing their hands up in utter despair. The doors of the High Court have yet to open for them in spite of a long and patient wait of as many as four to five years. It must however, be conceded that there are beneficiaries too among the litigants in the High Court who gain considerably by the delay in the disposal of cases. It is common knowledge that towards the end of every financial year most of the businessmen from whom huge arrears of tax are due, affluent Abkari contractors liable to pay kist and levies to the State, loanees from Financial Corporation and like institutions, all make a beeline to the High Court, engage appropriate counsel and manage to get very liberal stays of payment of huge amounts due to the State Exchequer. The amounts thus stayed are beleagued on a modest estimate to run into hundreds of lakhs, far more sufficient for the State to meet the demands of the Government employees for enhanced Pay and Dearness Allowance. It will be interesting to note that while the ordinary litigant thus waits and waits tediously in the serpentine queue, told of the priority in posting of cases strictly by the year of filing, recently the rich Abkari contractors could easily jump the queue and get their 1984 writ applications challenging the establishment of the beverage Corporation speedily disposed of this year itself by a Division Bench specially constituted for the purpose: See Moni Senan v. State of Kerala .