SC asks petitioner to give representation to e-committee on uniform case classification across HCs

    New Delhi, Nov 3 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Tuesday permitted a petitioner to give a representation to its e-committee seeking uniformity in case nomenclature, registration procedures and judicial terminology across high courts in the country.

    Observing that standardisation of case classifications is already part of an ongoing initiative of the apex court's e-committee to improve access to judicial data, a bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and justices Joymalya Bagchi and V Mohana refused to entertain the PIL filed by Ashwini Upadhyay on the issue on the judicial side.

    The bench, however, permitted Upadhyay to submit his plea as a representation to the top court's e-committee.

    During the hearing, the petitioner highlighted significant variations in the classification and naming of cases across high courts, including differences between benches of the same high court.

    He said that such inconsistencies create difficulties in identifying, tracking and searching judicial records.

    Pointing to the differences in case registration practices, he said that a writ petition is described as 'WP' in some high courts, while others use 'WPA'.

    He also cited discrepancies between the principal bench of the Allahabad High Court and its Lucknow bench.

    Justice Bagchi observed that the issue of uniform case nomenclature was relevant but said the e-committee had already taken up the matter as part of a broader standardisation initiative.

    "This is a very relevant point you are raising. But it is already part of the uniformity project, which is like a uniform judicial code. It would help us search data better on the NJDG (National Judicial Data Grid)," he said.

    The bench said that standardisation efforts had already been undertaken in district courts and magistrate courts through the case information system and that the process was being extended further.

    Upadhyay also drew the court's attention to variations in the number of case categories maintained by different high courts.

    According to the petition, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court has 238 types of cases, while the Allahabad High Court has 132.

    The petition, filed through advocate-on-record Ashwani Dubey, also flagged wide differences in court fees charged for similar proceedings across states.

    He said that variations create inequalities among litigants and warrant a uniform framework.

    The bench, however, said that court fees fall within the legislative domain of states and that a common fee structure may not be appropriate given differences in the economic capacity of litigants across regions.

    "Even court fees can vary from state to state. A resident of Delhi may have a greater capacity to pay court fees compared with a resident of Bihar or Odisha. We cannot subject poorer people to the same amount of court fees that residents of metropolitan cities may be able to afford," the CJI said.

    Justice Bagchi also said that the court could not place restrictions on state legislatures in matters falling within their legislative competence.

    The PIL sought formulation of a uniform judicial code for all high courts and their respective benches.

    The plea also sought directions to the Law Commission of India to prepare a comprehensive report, in consultation with the Supreme Court and high courts, on standardising court fees, case registration procedures, judicial terminology, abbreviations and classification norms.

    Alternatively, the plea sought the constitution of an expert committee or directions to the Union Ministry of Law and Justice to examine the issue and formulate appropriate guidelines.

    The petition cited substantial variations in court fees for identical categories of litigation.

    For instance, the fee for a suit valued at Rs 10,000 is stated to range from Rs 250 in Punjab and Haryana to Rs 1,480 in Bihar and Jharkhand, Rs 1,430 in Maharashtra and Rs 1,157.50 in Uttar Pradesh.

    For suits valued at Rs 5 lakh, the petition cited court fees of Rs 6,777 in Telangana and Rs 7,224 in Delhi, compared with Rs 37,908 in Uttar Pradesh and Rs 31,300 in Haryana.

    It also highlighted inconsistencies in case abbreviations and classifications. A criminal appeal, for instance, is registered under different abbreviations, including CRA, CR.A, CRAPL and CRL.A, across various high courts.

(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)