Supreme Court Affirms High Courts’ Independence, Rejects Time-Bound Disposal Requests
The Supreme Court reiterated its stance that High Courts are independent constitutional entities and not subordinate to the apex court, emphasizing that it cannot mandate a time-bound disposal of cases. This reaffirmation came during a hearing in the case of *Geeta Arora @ Sonu Punjaban v. State of NCT of Delhi*.
A Bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Prasanna B Varale addressed a plea from a woman seeking interim bail due to her son’s academic failures. Her counsel argued that the Delhi High Court had not yet addressed her application for suspension of sentence, despite 36 sittings and the judge handling fewer than 15 cases per day.
Justice Nath responded, stating, “We can request the High Court to expedite your plea for suspension of sentence. However, do not request this Court to enforce time-bound disposal. High Courts are not subordinate to us; we cannot direct them to expedite specific cases.”
The Bench’s remarks underline the principle that High Courts, such as the one presided over by Justice Anoop Kumar Mendiratta, operate independently and are not under the administrative oversight of the Supreme Court.
This follows earlier observations by the Supreme Court affirming the autonomy of High Courts, and their role as constitutional courts in their own right. The Supreme Court had similarly ruled in 2022 that High Courts do not fall under the Supreme Court’s administrative control.
Justice Abhay S Oka had previously emphasized that all courts, including trial courts, perform essential judicial functions and should not feel inferior to constitutional courts, as they all contribute equally to the legal system.
(With inputs from agency)
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