The Union government has told the Supreme Court that it has decided to establish a dedicated National Investigation Agency (NIA) court in every state and Union territory to speed up trials under anti-terror laws, with more than one court in jurisdictions that have over 10 such cases. The assurance came as the top court pressed both the Centre and the Delhi government to address delays and jurisdictional hurdles that, it said, allow hardened criminals to exploit gaps in the system.
A Bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi was informed that Delhi will set up 16 special courts to exclusively handle organised crime and terror cases. The court also asked the Centre and the Delhi government to explore the feasibility of a stringent anti-organised crime statute for the entire National Capital Region, on the lines of Maharashtra’s MCOCA, to avoid conflicts between multiple law enforcement agencies operating across state borders.
The issue arose during the hearing of bail pleas by gangster Mahesh Khatri, who faces multiple cases across different parts of the NCR and has cited trial delays, and Kailash Ramchandani, a Naxal sympathiser from Gadchiroli, Maharashtra, booked in connection with a 2019 IED blast that killed 15 policemen of a quick response team.
Flagging systemic challenges, CJI Surya Kant noted that organised crime often spans multiple states, creating uncertainty over which agency should investigate and which court has jurisdiction. “The eventual benefit goes to hardened criminals,” he observed, adding that such outcomes are neither in the interest of society nor the nation.
Justice Bagchi pointed to the problem of multiple FIRs across states and suggested that the Centre consider invoking the NIA Act in appropriate cases, enabling the agency to exercise its supervening power to take over investigations comprehensively in organised crime matters. Addressing the law officers, he said this approach could help consolidate probes and trials.
Additional Solicitor General Aishwarya Bhati told the court that the Centre has already held a virtual meeting chaired by the Union Home Secretary with state counterparts, where it was agreed to create additional judicial infrastructure and posts specifically for NIA cases, with funds to be allocated. She said the Centre has proposed ₹1 crore towards recurring and non-recurring expenditure for setting up additional NIA courts. In states with a high caseload—such as Kerala, where there are numerous cases linked to the banned Popular Front of India—more than one NIA court will be established.
Representing the Delhi government, Additional Solicitor General S.D. Sanjay said the 16 special courts earmarked for gangster and terror-related trials in the capital would become operational within three months.
The Bench stressed that these courts must conduct day-to-day trials under the NIA Act and other special statutes and should not be burdened with unrelated cases. It cautioned against merely redesignating existing courts as special courts, a practice the Supreme Court had earlier criticised for overloading the judiciary and delaying trials of undertrials, senior citizens, marginalised groups, and matrimonial disputes. Both law officers assured the court that new infrastructure is being created and that existing courts will not be overburdened.
The Supreme Court directed the Centre and the Delhi government to file an action taken report and listed the matter for further hearing in January 2026.
The court has consistently underscored the need for dedicated infrastructure for NIA cases. In July, it had pulled up the Centre and the Maharashtra government for designating existing courts as special courts instead of creating new ones. On May 23, it called for a “judicial audit” of laws dealing with terror and organised crime, noting that NIA cases are heinous, pan-India in scope, involve hundreds of witnesses, and cannot progress swiftly if presiding officers are tied up with routine dockets.
