Madhya Pradesh High Court Chief Justice Ravi Malimath will administer the oath of office to seven new judges on Monday, according to an official order. The seven judges, who are mainly being elevated from the district judiciary, are Roopesh Chandra Varshney, Anuradha Shukla, Sanjeev Sudhakar Kalgaonkar, Prem Narayan Singh, Achal Kumar Paliwal, Hirdesh, and Avanindra Kumar Singh.
Once these new judges are sworn in, the total number of judges in the Madhya Pradesh High Court will rise to 37, still short of the sanctioned strength of 53 judges. The HC registrar general, Ramkumar Choubey, confirmed this to PTI.
The appointment of new judges is a positive development for the high court, which has been facing a backlog of cases due to a shortage of judges. The seven new judges will be expected to contribute towards reducing the backlog and speeding up the judicial process.
The Madhya Pradesh High Court, which is based in the city of Jabalpur, has jurisdiction over the entire state of Madhya Pradesh. It hears appeals and petitions against orders and judgments of subordinate courts in the state. It also has jurisdiction over the Union Territory of Dadra and Nagar Haveli.
The appointment of new judges is part of an ongoing effort by the government to increase the strength of judges in high courts across the country. In recent years, the government has sanctioned the appointment of several new judges to different high courts, in an attempt to address the issue of judicial vacancies.
The shortage of judges has been a longstanding problem in the Indian judiciary, with courts facing an overwhelming number of cases and delays in the delivery of justice. According to the National Judicial Data Grid, there are currently over 4 crore cases pending in various courts across the country.
While the appointment of new judges is a step in the right direction, it is not enough to solve the problem of judicial backlog. Other measures, such as the use of technology to streamline court procedures, the appointment of support staff, and the creation of specialized courts to handle specific types of cases, will also be necessary to address this issue.
Nevertheless, the appointment of seven new judges to the Madhya Pradesh High Court is a welcome development, and is expected to have a positive impact on the functioning of the court. The new judges will be expected to bring their experience and expertise to bear on the cases before them, and to work towards delivering justice in a timely and efficient manner.
