For generations, visiting a court often meant dealing with files, registers, long queues and repeated trips. A person might have to travel a considerable distance to check the status of a case or submit a document. Lawyers and court staff, too, spent a large part of their time handling paperwork and maintaining physical records.
That picture is gradually changing. The e-Courts Mission Mode Project has brought technology into different parts of India’s judicial system. From online filing and virtual hearings to digital case records and online access to judgements, technology is changing the way courts function and how citizens interact with them.
The objective is simple: make the justice system more accessible, transparent and efficient while reducing the dependence on physical paperwork.
India has one of the world’s largest judicial systems, serving a population of more than a billion people. Managing such a system involves an enormous amount of information. Court orders, petitions, evidence, case files and other documents have traditionally been stored in physical form.
According to the information released by the Ministry of Law and Justice, more than 753 crore pages of court records have been digitised. This is significant because old records can be difficult to preserve and retrieve when they exist only in physical form. Digital records can be searched more easily and protected against physical damage.
The e-Courts project has developed in phases. The first phase focused largely on computerising courts and creating basic technological infrastructure. The second phase expanded citizen-oriented services, including the National Judicial Data Grid, e-Filing, e-Sewa Kendras and video-conferencing facilities.
The third phase, which is currently underway, has a wider ambition. It seeks to create more digital, paperless and intelligent courts by combining digitisation with technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning and Optical Character Recognition.
One of the most visible changes brought by digital technology is the possibility of accessing court services without always having to visit the court physically.
Through e-Filing, documents can be submitted electronically. Online services also allow litigants and lawyers to check case information, access orders and use other court-related facilities. Video conferencing has added another important dimension. Hearings can be conducted remotely in appropriate cases, allowing lawyers, witnesses and other participants to appear without travelling long distances.
According to the figures highlighted by the government, video-conferencing facilities have been expanded across 7,553 establishments, including courts, prisons and hospitals. More than 4.18 crore remote hearings have been conducted through these facilities. For people living far from courts, particularly in areas where travel can be expensive or time-consuming, such services can make a practical difference.
Previously, preparing and filing a case by lawyers/litigants meant the submission of physical documents. However, the advent of the e-filing system has revolutionized all this. The submission of documents can now be done through the online medium, which eliminates the need for frequent trips. Furthermore, it makes record-keeping much easier.
The system provides facilities for online submission of documents, access to templates and other digital services. According to the information provided by the Ministry of Law and Justice, more than 1.25 crore cases have been filed through the e-Filing platform since its inception. The wider adoption of e-Payments has also simplified the payment of court fees and fines. This is another example of a small administrative task becoming easier through technology. For the judiciary, digital filing can also reduce the physical storage burden created by millions of documents. National Judicial Data Grid brings greater visibility: Another major development is the National Judicial Data Grid, or NJDG.
The platform provides information about cases pending and disposed of across different levels of the judiciary. It allows citizens, lawyers, researchers and other stakeholders to access judicial data through a common digital platform. This has an important value beyond convenience. When information about cases is available digitally, it becomes easier to understand the workload of courts and monitor the progress of cases. The NJDG has therefore become an important part of the wider effort to make judicial information more accessible.
Digital transformation can create a new difficulty if people do not have the knowledge, devices or internet access required to use online services. The e-Courts Mission has addressed this issue through e-Sewa Kendras. Such centers act as facilitation centers in court complexes. Individuals can get help with e-filing and other digital court services such as certified copies, case information, and other online services. This is crucial since the idea of digital justice has to remain available to people who do not necessarily want to use the internet to access justice. E-Sewa Kendra centers have been opened in many court complexes by the government. According to the information from the infographic, 1,806 operational E-Sewa Kendras are available in court complexes.
India’s judicial system is too large and complex to be transformed overnight. Digitalisation is an ongoing process, and its success will depend on reliable infrastructure, cybersecurity, trained personnel and equal access to technology. There is also a need to ensure that technology remains easy to use. A complicated digital platform can create a barrier just as a complicated physical procedure can. Digital services must therefore be designed with ordinary citizens in mind. The e-Courts Mission marks a significant paradigm shift in terms of the delivery of justice. From the filing of paperwork to digitised documents that can be searched for through the computer, from the process of physical filing to the use of e-Filing and virtual hearings, the Indian judiciary is transforming into the digital era.
The objective, however, remains apparent – a justice system which utilises technology to avoid any unnecessary delay and make information more accessible.
With the third phase of the e-Courts Mission on its way to becoming a reality by 2027, there is no doubt that the process of change will be continuous. It will only remain to be seen how successfully technology assists the citizen when he approaches the court seeking justice.
