The Allahabad High Court is currently mired in a profound judicial crisis, operating at less than 50% of its sanctioned capacity.
With 81 judicial positions remaining unfilled, the institution is grappling with an extraordinary backlog of 11.55 lakh cases, severely hampering the expeditious administration of justice.
A Public Interest Litigation has been submitted, seeking urgent judicial intervention to expedite the appointment process and restore the court to its full sanctioned strength of 160 judges.
Judicial Appointments
The PIL, filed by Senior Advocate Satish Trivedi, with legal representation from Shashwat Anand, Syed Ahmed Faizan, and Saumitra Anand, was settled by Senior Advocate S.F.A. Naqvi. The matter is scheduled for hearing on March 6, 2025, before a Bench comprising the Chief Justice and Justice Kshitij Shailendra.
The petition underscores the dire consequences of the judicial shortfall, emphasizing that each judge is currently burdened with an average of 14,600 pending cases. Such an overwhelming caseload renders the timely dispensation of justice infeasible, effectively crippling the court’s operational efficacy and denying citizens their fundamental right to legal recourse.
Structural Reforms In Judicial Appointments
Filed under Article 226 of the Constitution, the PIL advocates for stringent judicial directives mandating compliance with the Memorandum of Procedure (MoP) for appointments. The petition insists on a framework that obligates High Court Chief Justices to recommend judicial candidates at least 6 months before a vacancy arises, thus preempting bureaucratic inertia in the appointment process.
The PIL further references a parliamentary statement by the Union Minister for Law and Justice, acknowledging that High Courts frequently fail to adhere to prescribed timelines, thereby exacerbating inefficiencies in judicial administration. Responding to Unstarred Question No. 413 in the Lok Sabha (February 3, 2023), the Minister conceded that procedural stagnation and judicial vacancies in the Allahabad High Court remain among the primary impediments to the dispensation of justice.
Despite a sanctioned strength of 160 judges, only 96 were in position as of February 2023, with numerous recommendations caught in bureaucratic limbo at various stages of processing.
Institutional Crisis
The petition invokes the Supreme Court’s persistent expressions of concern regarding the chronic judicial vacancies afflicting the Allahabad High Court. Despite explicit judicial directives, the appointment process remains stalled, precipitating an institutional crisis that threatens the foundational principle of access to justice.
Additionally, the PIL calls for a comprehensive status report from the Union Government, State Government, and High Court administration detailing the status of pending judicial appointments.
It further demands the establishment of a publicly accessible, real-time database to track judicial vacancies, pending recommendations, and appointment progress, thereby enhancing institutional transparency and accountability.
Consequences of Judicial Stagnation
As one of India’s most overburdened constitutional courts, the Allahabad High Court serves a population exceeding 24 crore. The PIL warns that the unchecked escalation of pending cases, coupled with systemic inefficiencies in judicial appointments, will further erode public confidence in the judiciary and render the legal system increasingly inaccessible.
With the March 6 hearing imminent, the legal community and affected litigants await the court’s response to what has been characterized as an escalating constitutional crisis in the judicial framework of Uttar Pradesh.
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