Courts are continuing to serve litigants through video conferencing amid coronavirus crisis
The public can with just a click of a button know the status of the judiciary across the country on a website launched today. Courts across the country are continuing to serve litigants through video conferencing amid the coronavirus crisis. From the Supreme Court to the High Court, cases are heard on video conferencing.
To strengthen the e-court system and to give citizens easy access to courts, Supreme Court judge Justice DY Chandrachud launched the website today. One can visit eCommitteesci.gov.in to see more details.
This website is one place where citizens can access all High Courts across the country and litigants can know the status of their cases on their mobile phones.
The contents of the website can also be shared on social media.
Chief Justice of India SA Bobde is the Patron-in-Chief of the Supreme Court's e-Committee, while Justice Chandrachud is its Chairperson.
The digital platforms created by the e-Committee have enabled stakeholders - litigants, lawyers, governmental and law enforcement agencies and citizens - to access judicial data and information in real-time.
Launching the website, Justice Chandrachud said, "We hear criticism for a change, talk of positives of the judicial system… This is the kind of work done for the benefits of citizens. We are moving to a marketplace of ideas and to inform the nation about initiatives. Judges must share experiences and initiatives and this website can be one central point."
"High Courts are doing remarkable work and people do not know about this. High Courts can inform the public about their work through this website," he said.
Justice Chandrachud said that from March 24 to August 28, the district judiciary have seen 28 lakh cases registered and 12 lakh disposed of through virtual hearings.
This website is friendly for those who are visually-challenged. Two visually-challenged experts, Rahul Bajaj and professor Elumalai, helped design it.
Rahul Bajaj is from Nagpur, who got a Rhodes scholarship and did his MPhil from Oxford. Professor Elumalai is from the School of Excellence in Law in Chennai. Justice Chandrachud thanked both of them for their inputs in enhancing the website.
People will soon be able to access the website in their local language, though for now it's only in English. Work on making it multilingual is going on.
"English is not the language of the masses and we will reach out to citizens through their language," Justice Chandrachud said.
The National Informatics Centre developed this website. Its Director General Neeta Verma said the website is secure and its contents can be shared on social media.