Parliament Watch: Shortage of judges, manual scavenging, Lakshadweep and more

With the resumption of work in Parliament, the once hot topics of discussion that were placed on the backburner due to the COVID-19 pandemic have now returned to the main stage..Here is an overview of some important Parliamentary Questions that were raised by Members of Parliament (MPs) in both Houses (Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha) during the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament..One female judge in Supreme Court, 13 in Madras High Court.A query was raised by Haji Fazlur Rehman before the Union Ministry of Law and Justice, regarding the number of female judges in the higher judiciary. Law Minister Kiren Rijiju informed the Lok Sabha that there is one female judge in the Supreme Court and that the Madras High Court has the highest number of female judges (13).The following list shows the number of male and female judges in the Supreme Court and High Courts across the country..[Lakshadweep] No proposal to transfer jurisdiction from Kerala High Court to Karnataka High Court.A question was tabled by MPs Anto Anthony, Rajmohan Unnithan and Hibi Eden as to whether there is a proposal to transfer the legal jurisdiction from Kerala High Court to Karnataka High Court.While replying to the question, Rijiju said that at present, there is no proposal received from the Lakshadweep Administration to transfer the legal jurisdiction of the Union Territory from the Kerala High Court to the Karnataka High Court..33% reservation for women in Parliament.A question was tabled by Kanimozhi Karunanidh as to whether the government has "proposed to bring the Women’s Representation Bill for providing 33 per cent reservation for women in Parliament and State Legislature?".Interestingly, without addressing the subject-matter of the question, the reply merely states that gender justice is an important commitment of the government. "Gender justice is an important commitment of the Government. The issue involved needs careful consideration on the basis of the consensus among all political parties before a Bill for amendment in the Constitution is brought before Parliament," reads the reply..No BCI proposal to withdraw All India Bar Exam (AIBE).The Union Law Minister stated that there is no proposal by the Bar Council of India (BCI) to withdraw the All India Bar Examination (AIBE), through which law graduates become qualified to practice in courts.The question was tabled by Kerala MP, who had enquired about the "the current status of proposal to withdraw AIBE" along with the time frame.Rijiju replied that "there is no proposal of Bar Council of India to withdraw the All India Bar Examination."Eden also inquired whether the Bar Council is going ahead with the examination in an open book mode or not, because the said examination is "completely unscientific and a waste of time.".No BCI proposal to withdraw AIBE: Law Ministry answers Lok Sabha MP's query if "unscientific" open-book exam will continue.Shortage of judges and vacant posts in subordinate courts.While replying to a question raised before the Lok Sabha, the Law Ministry revealed that there are around 5,132 vacancies in the subordinate courts. Uttar Pradesh has about 1,053 vacancies.As on June 30, the pan-India data on vacancies, sanctioned strength and working strength in subordinate courts stands as follows: Sanctioned strength: 24,368 Working strength: 19,236 Total vacancies: 5,132 .Number of curative and review petitions allowed since 2010.While replying to a question raised before the Lok Sabha, the Law Minister revealed that there were 92 Review Petitions (Civil), 48 Review Petitions (Criminal), 0 Curative Petitions (Civil), and 3 Curative Petitions (Criminal) allowed by the Supreme Court since 2010..Pendency of cases in Uttar Pradesh While replying to a question tabled by Satyadev Pachauri, the Law Ministry stated that as on June 30, 2021, about 5,68,987 civil cases and 4,51,406 criminal cases are pending before the Allahabad High Court.Around 18,41,155 civil and 73,94,155 criminal cases are pending before the subordinate courts and 5,43,081 cases in the Fast Track courts across Uttar Pradesh. .The following list shows the number of cases pending in Uttar Pradesh:.Disposal of cases through video conferencing mode.While replying to a question tabled by Chunni Lal Sahu, the Law Ministry stated that between March 2020 and June 2021, the district courts heard a total of 74,15,989 cases through video conference. The reply also notes that the case disposal status by digital and physical modes is not separately maintained. During the same period, a total of 97,21,491 cases were disposed of in all States/UTs via both modes. The State/UT wise position is as as follows: .No proposal to permit use of local language as language of proceedings in Gujarat High Court.A question was raised regarding the use of local language as the language of proceedings in the Gujarat High Court and district courts in the State.The government replied that there is "no such proposal is before the Government in respect of Gujarat High Court.""The Cabinet Committee’s decision dated 21.05.1965 has stipulated that consent of the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India be obtained on any proposal relating to use of a language other than English in the High Court," reads the reply..No Manual Scavenging deaths reported in the last five years.In response to a question tabled in the Rajya Sabha on the number of workers engaged in manual scavenging who have died in the last five years, the Union Minister of Social Justice and Empowerment stated,"No such deaths have been reported due to Manual Scavenging."On the steps taken to ensure rehabilitation of such workers, the Minister stated that all identified manual scavengers are being provided a one-time cash assistance of Rs. 40,000, along with awareness camps in their areas. Further, skill development programmes are being given to manual scavengers and their dependents with a monthly stipend of Rs. 3,000 during the training period. They are also being provided concessional loans and capital subsidy upto ₹5 lakh for self employment projects costing upto ₹15 lakh..No Manual Scavenging deaths have been reported in the last five years: Central government .National Portal for Transgender persons, vaccination of transgenders.A question was tabled before the Ministry regarding the reach of the National Portal for Transgender persons and the digital literacy for them to navigate through it.The Ministry stated that more than 3,77,565 transgender persons have used the portal and over 2,800 persons have used the portal for generating ID cards.Following is the table showing percentage of Transgender persons who have obtained facilities of the National Portal:.MP Derek O’ Brien posed a question before the Rajya Sabha on the measures being taken to ensure there is no discrimination against transgender persons in getting the COVID-19 vaccinationThe Union Ministry stated that directions have been issued to all States and Union Territories for all COVID vaccination centres to be Transgender friendly. Additionally, the Ministry has also mentioned that awareness about COVID appropriate behaviour has been conveyed to be observed by the community..Management of COVID-19 Pandemic.In reply to a question posed by KTS Tulsi on whether India has declared to have overcome the COVID-19 pandemic at any international forum, the Ministry of External Affairs stated that the government’s efforts thus far has been on mitigating the effects of the many variants of the virus through national efforts and international cooperation..Hate Crime/anti-Lynching law.A question was tabled before the Union Ministry of Home Affairs on the measures taken to counter the menace of hate speech, incitement to discrimination and violence in online and offline spaces.Minister of State in Nithyanand Rai replied,"Government of India intends to create a legal structure which is citizen-centric and prioritises to secure life and to preserve human rights."It was further stated that advisories have been issued to states and UTs, from time to time, to maintain law and order and ensure that any person who takes law into his/her own hand is punished promptly. Another advisory was issued to the states and UTs to keep watch on circulation of fake news and rumours having potential of inciting violence and to take all required measures to counter them effectively. Additionally advisories have also been issued to curb incidents of mob lynching in the country, generate public awareness to curb the menace of mob lynching, sensitize the service providers to take steps to check the propagation of false news and rumours having potential to incite mob violence and lynching..In response to a query as to whether the Centre has directed the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) to collect hate crime data, the reply states,"There is no such direction in judgment dated 17.07.2018 of the Hon’ble Supreme Court in Writ Petition (Civil) No. 754 of 2016 in the matter of Tehseen S. Poonawalla Vs. Union of India.".Breaking: Supreme Court urges Parliament to create separate law to deal with lynching.Statehood for Lakshadweep.A question was tabled by MP Binoy Viswam on whether the government has considered full statehood for Lakshadweep, and the steps being taken to increase the participation of the people of Union Territory in the democratic process.The reply states that there is no such proposal to grant statehood to Lakshadweep. It is further stated that adequate institutional arrangements exist for the expression of the democratic aspirations of the people in less populated UTs. People residing in the UTs elect their Members of Parliament to the Lok Sabha..Law and order situation in Jammu & Kashmir.In reply to a question tabled by MP Sasmit Patra on the steps that the government has taken to improve the law and order situation in Jammu & Kashmir, it was stated,"The number of terrorist incidents have reduced during 2020 by 59% as compared to 2019 and 32% upto June 2021 in comparison with corresponding period upto June, 2020. Shops and business establishments, public transport, Government Offices, educational and health institutions, etc. are functioning normally in UT of Jammu and Kashmir."The Ministry further stated that the government has adopted a policy of zero tolerance towards terrorism and has taken various measures such as strengthening of security apparatus, strict enforcement of law against anti-national elements, intensified cordon and search operations to effectively deal with the challenges posed by the terrorist organizations.