Govt to push bill to remove 65 more obsolete laws in Parliament session: Kiren Rijiju

Kiren Rijiju

Union Law Minister Kiren Rijiju on Monday said the government would push a bill in the Parliament session, which will resume on March 13, to repeal 65 more obsolete laws and other such provisions.

Addressing the 23rd Commonwealth Law Conference in Goa, the minister informed that more than 4.98 crore cases are pending in various courts in India and the pendency would be handled using technology, with a "paperless judiciary" being the ultimate aim of the government.

"Today, in every part of our country, every citizen is a beneficiary of the welfare steps taken by the Government of India. As a welfare state, it is very important that we listen to every individual," he said.

Rijiju said the Modi government has been at the forefront of taking various steps, especially in creating "ease of living" for common citizens. "Policies of the government regarding the ease of living are successful," he said.

The law minister said the government believes that laws are for the people and if laws become obstacles and compliances become a burden on the lives of people, then such provisions must be done away with.

"In the last eight-and-a-half years, we have removed 1,486 obsolete and redundant laws. In the ongoing budget session, which will resume on March 13, I am going to push a bill to remove another 65 bills (laws) and other provisions that are obsolete," he added.

Rijiju said the government wants a reduction in the pendency of the cases.

"More than 4 crore 98 lakh cases are pending in various courts of India. It is not easy to reduce the pendency simply because new cases are double the number of cases being disposed of. Indian Judges are working extraordinarily hard but it is becoming more challenging," he added.

The minister said, in normal circumstances, a judge handles 50-60 cases a day on average. "Some judges have disposed of 200 cases in a day but the pendency of cases is on the rise".

Rijiju said the government is using technology to handle this situation.

"We have started e-courts and special projects-phase III,.. our ultimate target is to make Indian Judiciary paperless," he said, adding that the government is also exploring other dispute redressal mechanisms like arbitration and mediation.

"Very soon we will be able to push through Mediation Bill so that mediation and arbitration can be institutionalized in the country," he added.

Goa Governor P S Sreedharan Pillai, Chief Minister Pramod Sawant and others were present during the inauguration of the five-day conference on Monday.

Representatives from 52 countries are participating in the event.