The Allahabad High Court has ordered all district and sessions judges across Uttar Pradesh to submit detailed reports and action plans regarding thousands of police final reports that remain unresolved in subordinate courts.
Expressing deep concern over systemic delays in the criminal justice process, a Lucknow bench led by Justice Tej Pratap Tiwari highlighted that roughly 50,000 final reports are currently awaiting judicial orders in Lucknow district courts alone, with comparable backlogs present in other districts state-wide.
Required Directives and Submission Guidelines
Under the court order, district judges must gather specific metrics on pending cases, document the primary reasons for procedural sluggishness, and outline concrete strategies for prompt resolution. These comprehensive reports are to be transmitted through the High Court’s Registrar General.
Additionally, district judges have been instructed to institute periodic reviews of pending final reports within their jurisdiction and ensure subordinate courts prioritize older matters. Justice Tiwari emphasized that administrative delays during early proceedings—such as issuing formal notices to complainants—regularly cause files to remain stalled for years, subjecting accused individuals to unwarranted hardship long after police complete their investigations.
Passport Impediment Prompts Judicial Action
The statewide instructions stem from a petition concerning a case registered at the Gosaiganj police station. Although law enforcement officials submitted a final closures report on July 11, 2020, the local court has failed to issue a final order on the matter for four years.
The petitioners, who operate businesses requiring regular international travel, informed the bench that the lingering legal uncertainty has rendered them unable to renew their passports.
The High Court has set August 20 for the next hearing in the case.
