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Law and justice directly affect the lives of ordinary citizens, yet public awareness of both remains inadequate.
by Adv. Dr. Chinmay Bhosale · 4 MINS READ
When access to courts is difficult and proceedings take years to conclude, the constitutional promise of equality risks becoming a distant ideal. Public approval of the police encounter in the Hyderabad gang-rape case raises a troubling question: are citizens losing faith in the institutions responsible for delivering justice?
The Constitutional Promise and a Colonial Inheritance
India is a republic founded on its Constitution. We take pride in the principle that all citizens are equal, and our laws and judicial institutions are intended to uphold that equality.
The present judicial system, however, originated under British rule, and we continue to follow that inherited framework. The article traces the preparation of the Indian Penal Code to 1833, states that it was presented in 1853, and records that it came into force in 1860. During the same period, the British began establishing courts in India.
This history invites different reactions. Some may view it as evidence of progressive British thinking; others may question why India continues to follow such an old system. A more fundamental issue is whether the colonial framework was designed to deliver genuine justice or merely create the appearance of doing so—and whether that appearance continues to substitute for meaningful access to justice.
When Citizens Welcome an “Encounter”
The public welcome given to the police encounter in the Hyderabad gang-rape case is a matter of concern for India, particularly for its justice system.
Approval of an encounter as a means of delivering justice suggests that confidence in judicial institutions is weakening. When citizens prefer immediate, forceful action to the process of a trial, the justice system must confront the reasons for that preference.
Concrete measures must be identified and implemented urgently, before public confidence erodes further.
The Barriers to Effective Justice
Several serious difficulties undermine trust in the justice system:
The time taken to decide cases.
An insufficient number of judges.
Excessive judicial workloads.
Inadequate infrastructure.
An overburdened police system.
The article states that India has fewer than 20 judges per million people. It cites the Law Commission’s 120th Report as recommending at least 50 judges per million. It further notes that England, whose system India adopted, has more than 50, while the United States has more than 100.
These figures illustrate the scale of the shortage. Yet appointing more judges, though necessary, is only part of the solution. Citizens must also be able to reach the courts and pursue their claims without prohibitive difficulty.
The Cost of Reaching the Courts
The absence of a High Court in Pune illustrates the practical barriers to justice.
The article records that the Bombay High Court was established in 1862 under Letters Patent and was then the only High Court serving western India. The author questions whether this arrangement was intended to make justice accessible or merely to create the appearance of judicial administration.
Although the Bombay High Court subsequently became the High Court for Maharashtra, the article asks whether access to justice has meaningfully improved.
Citizens from Pune district and the other districts within the Pune division must still travel to Mumbai. Travel, accommodation and the physical demands of repeated journeys lead many to abandon their legal rights.
Even those who overcome these obstacles face lengthy proceedings, with cases taking years to reach a decision.
The familiar principle that “justice delayed is justice denied” therefore has consequences beyond any individual dispute. Persistent delay damages public confidence and, over time, threatens respect for the rule of law.
Strengthening the Institutions That Deliver Justice
The justice system rests on three principal components: the law, the courts and the police. Each must function effectively to uphold the spirit of the Constitution.
The article calls for outdated laws to be addressed, the number of courts to be increased and judicial workloads to be reduced. It also stresses the need for stronger infrastructure and the effective integration of technology into the work of both the courts and the police.
These reforms are essential to making justice more accessible and restoring confidence in lawful procedures.
A Wake-Up Call for the Justice System
Public approval of the Hyderabad encounter should serve as a wake-up call for the government and the institutions responsible for administering justice.
The legal impact extends beyond delays or institutional shortcomings: when citizens lose faith in courts, confidence in the rule of law itself is weakened. Restoring that confidence requires sustained efforts to ensure that justice is accessible, timely and effective so that the promise of justice becomes a lived reality.
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