Reform court functioning.

Is it time for courts to start functioning in the 21st century? Courts in India have not upgraded or changed from the 19th century and still have processes and procedures laid down by the British. Can we start a discussion that would suggest improvements required that would make the system more efficient and corruption free.

1. Cases where a minor crime has been committed and the criminal has served his time but is still stuck in prison because his case has not come up, etc, should be auto highlighted by the system to the judge for release immediately. This will also ease Jail resources.
2. Bail should be an exception and not the rule. Major crimes should be non-bailable. No exceptions for any reason.
3. All documents filed should be scanned and copies kept in the system or should be provided as a CD along with the hardcopies of documents. We have all heard of documents going missing...especially in high profile cases. This would also be environmentally friendly.
4. Date giving should not be the job of a judge. More than 1/2 the court time is wasted in the judge giving dates....which any peon can do. When there are lakhs of cases pending can we have a more optimal usage of the judge's time. Let the tool automatically give out dates.
5. If a case has more than 3 dates with no movement due to whatever reason should be escalated. A lot of judges give dates for years because they do not want to give decisions. They may not be the best people for the job.
6. Can we make incentives and promotions of judges merit based?
7. Archaic laws that are anti-people should be removed.
8. Any case pending for more than a fixed number of years need to be fast tracked.
9. Administrative offices in the court need to be under CCTV cover. A lot of the corrupt practices happen here. These places should be carefully monitored.
10. Washrooms in the court house should be upgraded and kept clean. They are in a dismal and filthy condition currently.
11. The infrastructure and resources of court houses need to be upgraded. Most court rooms are filthy - filled with cobwebs, dust, broken furniture, etc. Fans should be provided in court rooms. Water outlets to be provided at regular intervals.
12. The mess / food court is filthy and unhygienic. The wash space is unclean and the places are dark and dingy. A total revamp of the space if desperately required. more