By IANS,
New Delhi: The Law Commission of India has recommended division of the Supreme Court in four regional benches at Delhi, Kolkata, Mumbai and Chennai or Hyderabad besides another one at Delhi to adjudicate on matters involving only constitutional questions.
The Law Commission in its report submitted Wednesday said that the four regional or “cassation benches” will review the orders of various high courts in the country and work as “judicial courts of last resorts” having the power to review and quash (casser in French) the decision of any court below it.
In the latest report submitted to the union law ministry, the panel recommended division citing “an unbearable load of arrears” on the apex court.
The backlog of cases pending at the apex court has recently crossed the 50,000 mark.
The law panel suggested another constitution bench of the Supreme Court at Delhi with the power to adjudicate the constitutional issues.
“Constitutional adjudication or determination of constitutional controversies by the Supreme Court has its own importance. This includes the authority to rule on whether or not laws that are challenged are in fact unconstitutional,” the commission said.
It said many countries have constitutional as well as cassation courts for adjudication of non-constitutional matters.
The report said while the apex court is burdened with cases, the litigants too end up spending a lot of time and money travelling from far-flung areas to reach Delhi for hearings.