The Supreme Court has emphasized that requesting physical copies of documents from lawyers after they have been electronically filed undermines the purpose of e-filing. This observation was made by a bench led by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, along with Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra, during a hearing on Tuesday concerning the effective implementation of digital filing at the National Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission (NCDRC) and state consumer disputes redressal commissions (SCDRCs).
The petition, filed by Usha Garg, raised concerns that lawyers are being asked to submit physical copies of documents even after filing them digitally. The bench expressed its understanding of the burden this places on lawyers and questioned the necessity of digital filing if it merely adds to their workload with redundant paper filings. “If we are moving into the digital world, but on the other hand, we also put the burden on the lawyers for doing additional paper filing, then why have digital filing at all? We had to dispense with it at the Supreme Court two years ago,” remarked the Chief Justice.
Additionally, the bench took note of the concerns raised by NCDRC chairperson Justice A.P. Shahi regarding delays in filling vacancies at SCDRCs, which have adversely impacted judicial functioning. The Chief Justice requested Justice Shahi to provide details of pending petitions and assured that the Supreme Court would address the issue of appointments at SCDRCs promptly.
Justice Shahi, appearing virtually, also highlighted challenges related to data migration from the “e-Dakhila” portal to the new “e-Jagriti” system. The “e-Jagriti” portal, developed by the Union Ministry for Consumer Affairs, Food, and Public Distribution, aims to streamline the consumer dispute resolution process across all levels.
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The Supreme Court also directed the secretary of the consumer affairs ministry to appear virtually at the next hearing to provide an update on the progress of digital filing implementation.
