Long delays, burdened courts: We need a national mission for negotiated justice, Pg13

Key Highlights:

• Over 5 crore cases are pending in Indian courts, with the majority in district and subordinate courts.
• Plea bargaining, introduced in 2005, is used in less than 1% of cases in India.
• The Attorney General for India has suggested a national protocol for plea bargaining.
• A national mission for negotiated justice, named Sahmati Samadhan Nyaya Mission, is proposed to promote plea bargaining and pre-trial settlements.

Detailed Insights:

• The delays in the Indian justice system can lead to trauma for victims, prolonged imprisonment for pre-trial detainees, and financial losses in civil disputes.
• A slow justice system negatively impacts the economy by hindering contract enforcement, raising business costs, and reducing investor confidence.
• Plea bargaining, where the accused accepts responsibility for a crime in exchange for a lighter sentence, is a common practice in countries like the US, England, Canada and Australia.
• A national mission for negotiated justice would involve training prosecutors, reforming lawyer payment structures, encouraging early settlement methods by judges, and raising public awareness.
• Effective plea bargaining can free up court resources, allowing more attention to be given to serious crimes and constitutional issues.

Key Concepts Involved:

• Plea Bargaining: An agreement in which a defendant pleads guilty in exchange for concessions from the prosecutor.
• Pre-trial Settlement: Resolution of a case before it goes to trial, often through negotiation or mediation.
• Negotiated Justice: A system where disputes are resolved through negotiation and agreement rather than formal adjudication.