CJI Surya Kant Plans National AI Case System; Increase Judicial Strength to Reduce Pendency

Justice Surya Kant was sworn in as the 53rd Chief Justice of India (CJI) in late 2025, inheriting a judicial system strained by over 54.93 million pending cases across courts, including more than 90,000 in the Supreme Court and 64 lakh in High Courts, according to the National Judicial Data Grid. With a tenure of nearly 15 months—one of the longer terms among recent CJIs—Justice Kant faces heightened public expectations to address systemic delays and restore efficiency at a critical juncture for India's justice delivery.

In an opinion piece by C Raj Kumar, founding vice chancellor of OP Jindal Global University, Justice Kant is urged to prioritise transformative reforms during his relatively extended term. Among the last ten CJIs, only three had tenures exceeding 15 months, and future appointments suggest shorter terms for most successors, making Kant's leadership pivotal for lasting institutional change.

A key proposal is the development of a national AI-enabled case management system to triage and prioritise matters using algorithms based on legal complexity, valuation, and subject matter. This could include clustering similar cases for simultaneous hearing—such as those involving common government departments or disputes in service matters and land acquisition—to accelerate disposal. The system would complement judicial discretion while drawing from successful models in Malaysia, Singapore, and the UK, where data analytics and predictive tools have significantly reduced backlogs.

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Additional measures include stricter adjournment protocols, requiring reasoned orders and imposing fines for frivolous requests to curb delays often linked to judicial and litigant behaviour. Auditing bench practices and enforcing time-bound clearances are recommended to foster accountability on both sides of the courtroom.

Another critical reform focuses on increasing judicial strength through progressive planning to improve India's judge-population ratio, currently at around 15 judges per million—far below developed nations like the UK (over 100) and the US (over 150). The blueprint calls for filling all existing vacancies promptly and targeting ratios of 30 judges per million by 2030, 40 by 2040, and 50 by 2047.

As Justice Kant begins his tenure, these proposals represent a comprehensive blueprint for modernising India's judiciary, leveraging technology, best global practices, and structural enhancements to tackle pendency and enhance public trust in the justice system.

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