Need special courts for NIA cases: SC

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday underlined the need for dedicated courts for NIA cases while calling for a “judicial audit” of laws enacted by the Centre and the prospective ones by the states.A bench of Justices Surya Kant and N Kotiswar Singh said the cases entrusted to the NIA were of heinous cases, having pan India ramifications.The top court said each such case contained hundreds of witnesses and the trial did not progress with the required pace as the presiding officers of the court were busy with other cases.

“In the absence of judicial audit of cases likely to be generated with the enactment of law, the trial of such cases had brought burden on the court,” the bench said.The top court further said the only appropriate course meant setting up special courts where trial of cases only related to special statutes could be carried out with a day-to-day hearing.”The decision of creating additional courts and requisite infrastructure is in the policy domain of the executive which ought to be taken in consultation with the chief justice of the high court after having data of pending cases,” the bench said.

It granted Additional Solicitor General Rajkumar Bhaskar Thakre four weeks to seek instructions and posted the hearing in July.The top court was hearing a bail plea of Kailash Ramchandani, a Naxal sympathiser from Gadchiroli in Maharashtra.He was booked after 15 policemen of a quick response team were killed in a IED blast in 2019.The ASG said a notification was issued by Maharashtra home ministry designating a court as a special court for trial of cases investigated by the NIA.

The bench however questioned the development without consulting with the chief justice of the high court.”Would the presiding officer of the designated court continue hearing other cases as well besides the NIA cases? What will happen to other cases, will the trial in those cases not get delayed. Have you consulted the Chief Justice of the High Court?” Justice Kant asked.The bench underscored the need to create additional courts and required infrastructure for such cases to be heard on a day-to-day basis.

It asked Thakre to furnish details of the pending NIA cases in Maharashtra and pan-India and take instructions on setting up of special courts.The bench refused the relief of bail to Ramchandani for time being pointing the facts of his case in which 15 policemen were killed in a bomb blast.”The court is only interested in expediting your trial,” it said.