Supreme Court to deploy AI to end human role in case listing, bench allocation

In a move that could mark a significant change in the functioning of the Supreme Court's administrative side, software powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI) will take over case listing and bench allocation in the top court effectively removing human intervention in the process. .The decision was taken by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, highly placed sources told Bar & Bench. Currently, cases are allocated to different Benches by the CJI who is the master of roster, a power which bring the office of CJI under immense scrutiny. The reforms stem from an internal probe that surfaced two systemic failures within the registry - one, registry officials who had dug into their positions over extended periods, and two, outdated technological infrastructure that had long provided cover for administrative lapses including irregular and improper case allocation.Alongside, the Supreme Court registry has witnessed an unprecedented wave of interdepartmental transfers of registry officials in a bid to dismantle years of entrenched incumbency and systemic inefficiency. A second round of transfers is expected before the end of the month..The trigger was a glaring lapse uncovered during proceedings before a bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Vipul Pancholi, which was hearing a petition filed by Irfan Solanki challenging the Uttar Pradesh Gangsters and Anti-Social Activities (Prevention) Act, 1986, on grounds of repugnancy with Section 111 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. .The State of Uttar Pradesh brought to the court's notice that a near-identical challenge in Md. Anas Chaudhary v. State of Uttar Pradesh had already been dismissed by a three-judge bench comprising former Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, Justice PS Narasimha and Justice Dipankar Datta on December 12, 2022, with a direction to the petitioner to pursue remedies before the competent forum..Despite the dismissal, a similar petition had found its way onto the cause list before a fresh bench..Senior advocate Shoeb Alam, appearing for petitioner Irfan Solanki, had strongly opposed a request by ASG Natraj to transfer a related part-heard matter, which was being heard by a bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan, to the Chief Justice's court. Alam had pointed out that arguments from both sides had already been heard at length before that bench, and that Natraj himself had appeared there and raised similar arguments without success.When Justice Bagchi raised a query about the broader implications of Alam's proposition that the enactment of the BNS could affect similar provisions in state laws on organised crime, Alam cited the judgment in MA Tulloch as having laid down the relevant principle, adding that the very issue was already being adjudicated by the other bench. He also referred to a specific order where the bench had recorded this issue in detail. At one point, when Alam offered to withdraw his writ petition before that bench, the CJI said he needed his assistance in the matter..The CJI had then announced that a deeper administrative probe would follow.