Measuring Transparency in the Indian Judiciary: The Judicial Transparency Index

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“One of the greatest dangers to the institutions in a constitutional democracy is the danger of being opaque. When you open up your processes, you generate a degree of accountability, transparency, and you generate a sense of responsiveness to the needs of citizens.” - Justice (Retd.) DY Chandrachud Transparency in public institutions is central to constitutional democracy and the rule of law. Within the judiciary, it promotes independence, efficiency, and institutional legitimacy. Despite a stated commitment to openness, however, India's judiciary has faced persistent concerns regarding transparency in various aspects of its functioning, including appointments, transfers, and disciplinary proceedings. Therefore, to foster greater transparency in courts, this report identifies baseline standards of judicial transparency and provides a measurable framework for its evaluation in the form of the Judicial Transparency Index (‘JTI’). Benchmarking Judicial Transparency The JTI defines judicial transparency as the proactive disclosure of information on court websites that enables the public to assess the courts’ functioning. To understand which information needs to be made available, it relies on national and international standards of transparency, including the Right to Information Act, 2005; Article 11 of the United Nations Convention against Corruption and its implementation guide; and the Istanbul Declaration on Transparency in the Judicial Process. The index converts these standards into measurable indicators, providing internal and external stakeholders with a structured tool to advocate for greater judicial transparency. The Index The JTI examines judicial transparency in three broad categories — judicial processes, institutional governance and administration, and judicial and administrative personnel — and contains 18 themes of transparency. Each of the themes are further disaggregated into components along with indicators and scoring guides to help evaluate the indicators. Judicial Processes The ‘open courts’ principle mandates transparency in the judicial process to ensure fairness of trials. Historically, it has meant that court proceedings and orders are open and accessible to the public, both directly and through the media. More recently, however, it has also come to include transparency in related processes like case allocation and recusal, due to their significant influence on judicial outcomes. This category contains the following themes under it: Public access to court hearings ( Page 17 ) Publication of cause lists ( Page 19 ) Publication of judgements and orders ( Page 21 ) Transparency in case allocation ( Page 22 ) Publication of information regarding recusals ( Page 24 ) Facilitating media access to courts ( Page 25 ) Institutional governance and administration Transparency in court administration offers the public insight into the functioning of courts. By facilitating public oversight, greater administrative transparency can improve judicial efficiency and productivity through the identification of bottlenecks and inefficiencies in court administration. This category consists of the following themes: Publication of annual reports ( Page 28 ) Publication of rules, regulations, and manuals governing the court ( Page 30 ) Publishing an updated list of all committees and their composition ( Page 31 ) Publishing information pertaining to implementation of the PoSH Act ( Page 33 ) Publishing information facilitating the implementation of the RTI Act ( Page 34 ) Budgetary disclosures ( Page 36 ) Judicial and administrative personnel The efficient, independent, and fair functioning of the judiciary depends on key actors within the system. The availability of adequate human resources ensures efficiency of courts, and their conduct often determines judicial independence, impartiality, and integrity. Disclosure of personnel-related information is therefore essential to understanding judicial functioning and advancing its efficiency and independence. This category covers the following themes: Publishing up-to-date information on sanctioned and working strength ( Page 38 ) Publishing an up-to-date list of all Registrars, Additional Registrars, and Assistant Registrars ( Page 40 ) Disclosures regarding appointments and recruitment ( Page 41 ) Disclosures regarding transfers ( Page 43 ) Disclosures regarding disciplinary actions against judges ( Page 46 ) Proactive disclosure of assets ( Page 49 ) The index also provides 4 additional transparency themes as recommendations in areas where no mandates exist, or where collation and disclosure of information may be resource-intensive. Through a methodologically robust framework, the JTI seeks to offer the Indian judiciary a pathway to further strengthen institutional legitimacy and independence through greater transparency.

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Measuring Transparency in the Indian Judiciary - the Judicial Transparency Index.pdf

Authors

Jyotika Randhawa

Senior Resident Fellow

At JALDI, I have worked on engagements with the National Court Management Systems’ Human Resource Sub-committee; and the Telangana State Judicial Academy (POCSO and Judicial Data Management training sessions). Other projects that I have worked on are Re-imagined Civil Rules of Practice (process re-engineering); Differentiated Case Management for the Indian Judiciary (case management, process re-engineering); and the Constitution Bench Pendency Portal (data analysis, assessing courts’ capacity). I have previously provided research assistance for the report ‘A Decade of POCSO: Developments, Challenges, and Insights from Judicial Data’ (assessing courts’ capacity). I have completed my B.A.LLB. from ILS Law College, Pune in 2020 and obtained my Master’s in Social Work in Criminology from Tata Institute of Social Sciences in 2022. My vision for the Indian judiciary entails a system that is accessible to all, down to the very vulnerable sections of the society. The judiciary must adopt a holistic approach and work in tandem with ancillary institutions such as legal aid clinics, social workers, and the Juvenile Justice System to be able implement effective justice. When not working, I enjoy reading, sketching and spending time with my cats.

Shruthi Naik

Senior Resident Fellow and Team Lead

At JALDI, I work on research and projects focused on improving case management, reducing delays in the progress of cases, and improving access to justice. Since 2016, I have worked extensively on access to justice and judicial policy reform. I have written and contributed to a number of data-driven reports on the functioning of the judiciary, worked closely with the judiciary and government to help improve the delivery of justice, conducted a large household survey, and edited a book on the impact of judicial delays. My areas of interest include access to justice, inequality, gender, and accountability in governance. I received a B.A. LL.B. (Hons.) from the National Law School of India University, Bengaluru in 2015 and a Master of Public Policy from the Hertie School, Berlin in 2023. Before joining Vidhi, I worked with the RefMig (Refugees are Migrants) project in Berlin, DAKSH, and Cyril Amarchand Mangaldas. My dream for the Indian judiciary is to make it efficient and responsive to the needs of all citizens, so that no one is forced to seek justice elsewhere due to factors such as time, cost of litigation or uncertainty. Outside work, I enjoy dabbling in art and experimenting with new cuisines.

Shreya Tripathy

Senior Resident Fellow

Since 2018, I have worked in JALDI on topics such as judicial diversity, infrastructure and efficient budgeting for the judiciary. I have also undertaken several data-driven projects intending to understand the systemic problems of the judiciary at all levels and provide targeted solutions. I have publications in the Economic and Political Weekly and other law & policy review journals. I have also published in the Outlook and platforms such as Hindustan Times and The Print. My areas of interest include Human Rights & Judicial Reforms. I graduated with B.B.A.LL.B. from National Law University, Odisha in 2018. Before joining Vidhi, I interned in organizations like Nyaaya, Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative, South Asia Human Rights Documentation Centre and Partners for Law in Development. My dream for the Indian judiciary is that it becomes more inclusive and accessible for all. The general narrative when it comes to accessibility and the judiciary tends to shift towards litigants who may be Persons with Disabilities. It is high time that the judiciary starts changing this narrative and starts considering accessibility for all and at all levels including judicial officers and staff. I am an enthusiastic collector of cookbooks and love trying out recipes from around the world.

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