Gujarat High Court arranged for the Special Saturday Benches for adjudicating 10 years old criminal appeals and appeals where convicts have been in the jail for more than 10 years.
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GUJARAT: In a commendable and proactive move, the Gujarat High Court has introduced Special Saturday Benches. These benches aim to reduce the alarming backlog of criminal appeals.
Many of these appeals have been pending for over a decade. This initiative signals a new chapter in judicial responsiveness and efficiency in the state’s justice delivery system.
The Indian judiciary, while robust in structure, often battles systemic delays. In the case of the Gujarat High Court, a significant number of criminal appeals have remained unresolved for more than 10 years. These delays not only burden the courts but also leave accused individuals and victims in prolonged states of uncertainty and injustice.
With the mounting pendency creating a chokehold in the criminal justice system, the High Court’s decision to deploy Special Benches on Saturdays reflects a recognition of urgency and a will to act.
“The Criminal Appeals will be listed before the Special Benches on Saturdays, irrespective of whether the said matters are already fixed or adjourned to another date. This will be done by preponing or postponing the date assigned by the Hon’ble Courts/System-Generated Next Listing Date.”
As per Notification No. RJ/16 of 2025, the Gujarat High Court has constituted dedicated benches to sit on Saturdays to exclusively hear and dispose of old criminal appeals. The move is:
- Target: Focused specifically on appeals pending for over a decade.
- Time-bound: Set to run initially on designated Saturdays.
- Strategy: Aims to reduce case pendency while balancing existing weekday dockets.
Benches have been pre-assigned specifically for Saturday sittings, and cases are being pre-listed in advance to avoid logistical confusion. Additionally, the registry and court staff have been instructed to ensure smooth coordination and execution.
Criminal Appeals will be listed before Special Benches on Saturdays, regardless of any prior scheduling or adjournment, by rescheduling the date fixed by the Hon’ble Courts or the system-generated listing.
These matters will be categorized as “Targeted Matters,” and the corresponding Cause List will be published a day before each working Saturday, as per the arrangement of the Special Benches.
However, the 100 oldest Criminal Appeals will be excluded from the Saturday listings and will continue to be heard every Wednesday under the “Wednesday Weekly List (WWL) of 02.07.2025.”
“The Criminal Appeals will be notified excluding the 100 oldest matters, which will continue to be listed every Wednesday under the heading: “WEDNESDAY WEEKLY LIST (WWL) OF ‘02.07.2025’.”
Advocates and counsels may appear in hybrid mode for these hearings, following the procedure laid down in Hybrid Hearing Circular No. ITC/234/2024 dated 20.02.2024. The next hearing dates will be updated by the concerned Assistant Registrar or Court Master.
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