PANAJI: Public Interest Litigations are being misused by business competitors to affect rivals, Attorney General of India Mukul Rohatgi said even as he pitched for large scale reforms in the judiciary at a lecture at Dona Paula on the outskirts of Panaji.
Speaking on the issue of India’s judicial system at the International Centre in Goa Rohatgi called for a ‘relook’ on PILs, the way they are.
“Public Interest Litigation (PILs) started in a very good fashion. It was meant for the downtrodden and the poor, it was meant for bonded labour. Those who could not go to the court, anybody could file a case on their behalf. No legal standing was required… But the rule of standing was relaxed in all PILs… cases relating to environment, related to bonded labour,” Rohatgi began.
“But after it started and became a regular feature, I have noticed over the last 15-20 years, there is a great misuse of public interest litigation, in the name PIL somebody is put up but the real person is behind, the person who is put up, is a competitor of the other side in order to put down the other side affecting business or affecting other things these public interest litigations are being conducted.
“Courts have come down heavily at times when they realise that there is somebody standing behind the litigant. But it is necessary today to have a relook whether we can continue with this nature of public interest litigation,” he said.
He cited the example of Goa, where he said he guessed that “at least 25% of cases in this high court will be public interest litigation against any type of construction, every type of business venture.”
As part of his lecture Rohatgi also spoke of the huge backlog of cases ailing the judicial system, which he said could be reduced through improving the judge to population ratio, which is one of the worst in the world, reducing the number of appeals that can be filed, citing the fact that even landlord vs tenant cases end up in the Supreme Court as an example as well as ensuring that only the constitutional cases be dealt by the Supreme Court.
He also hit out at what he termed was adhocism in the Indian judiciary. “If we put the same case papers before the different benches of the Supreme Court on the same day. I am sure we will get six to seven different orders. There has to be a set of well defined rules on how judgements are arrived at,” he said. The lecture was chaired by the Attorney General of Goa Adv Atmaram Nadkarni.
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At least 25% of cases in this high court (Goa) will be public interest litigation against any type of construction, every type of business venture
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