Plea In SC Seeking Establishment of Central & State Committees To Examine & Adopt Global Best Practices For Improvement Of Rule Of Law [Read Petition]

A plea has been filed before the Supreme Court, seeking a direction to the Central as well as all the State governments and the administration of UTs, to constitute expert committees to examine the best practices of the countries ranked among top 20 in the 'Rule of Law Index' and accordingly take appropriate steps to improve India's international ranking.

The Rule of Law Index is the world's leading source of original & independent data on the Rule of Law, announced annually by the World Justice Project. Covering 128 countries and jurisdictions, the Index relies on more than 1,30,000 household surveys and 4,000 legal practitioner and expert surveys to measure how the rule of law is experienced and perceived worldwide.

The PIL moved by BJP leader Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay points out that in the 2020 Rankings, India acquired only 69^th position on the Index and that it has never been ranked even among top 50.

In this backdrop, the Petitioner has sought constitution of Expert Committees to take measures for improvement of the Rule of Law in India. The expert committees, he suggests, should be comprised of one renowned jurist, people representative, economist, educationist, public servant, social activist and journalist.

The Petitioner submits that despite such poor performance, successive governments have done nothing to improve international ranking of India. The injury caused to the public as a result, is large because it confirms poor performance across eight factors evaluated by the WJP for ranking purposes. These factors are:

• Constraints on government powers
• Absence of corruption
• Open government
• Fundamental rights
• Public order and security
• Regulatory enforcement
• Civil justice
• Criminal justice

"Poor Rule of Law has devastating effects on right to life and liberty &severely affects social economic justice, fraternity, dignity of individual, unity and national integration& also offends rights guaranteed under Articles 14 and 21," the plea states.

The abovementioned factors are further disaggregated into sub-factors, and India's overall performance on the Index indicates the lackadaisical approach of the government in adhering to the rule of law.

For instance, the Petitioner pointed out, India ranks 97^th on the Civil Justice regime. This factor is comprised of sub-factors such as timely resolution, accessibility, affordability, non-discriminatory, and independence of judicial systems. Poor performance on this factor signifies that India's legal system is prone to delays, and it is thus no wonder that India ranked below countries like Malaysia, Senegal, Kazakhstan.

In order to enhance India's ranking on the Index thus, it has been submitted that the government needs to undertake effective implementation of: (i) National Litigation Policy (ii) reduce intra-government litigation (iii) expedite appointment of judges (iv) implement National Mission for Justice Delivery (v) overhaul court infrastructure to eliminate delays and dispose of pending cases and (vi) move to embrace alternative dispute resolution mechanisms like arbitration and mediation.

Tracing the importance of rule of law in the words of judges of the Supreme Court vide various judgments and speeches, the Petitioner asserted,

"Effective rule of law reduces corruption, combats poverty and diseases, and protects people from injustices - large and small. Rule of law is the foundation for communities of justice, opportunity & peace—underpinning development, accountable government, and respect for fundamental rights."

In the alternative, the Petitioner has prayed that the Law Commission of India be directed to examine the best practices of the countries, ranked among top 20 in the Rule of Law Index, 2020, and accordingly suggest requisite steps.

The petition has been drawn by Mr. Ashwani Kumar Dubey, Advocate on Record.

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