Chief Justice of India, Surya Kant, has recently expressed concerns regarding the rising number of Public Interest Litigations (PILs) being filed in the judiciary. During a session, he remarked on how some individuals seem to have adopted a routine where they read the newspaper in the morning and subsequently file PILs by evening. This observation points towards a growing trend where certain people might be leveraging the PIL mechanism not necessarily for genuine public interest but possibly for personal agendas or to garner attention.
The Chief Justice emphasized that while PILs serve an essential purpose in addressing issues that affect the public at large, the increasing frequency of frivolous or motivated petitions could undermine the integrity of the judicial system. He suggested that this trend could lead to a situation where valuable judicial resources are being diverted towards matters that do not hold significant public interest. The judiciary’s time and efforts, he indicated, should ideally be focused on cases that genuinely require intervention for the welfare of society.
Moreover, CJI Surya Kant’s comments serve as a call to action for both the legal community and the public at large to approach the PIL process with a sense of responsibility and seriousness. The judiciary is meant to act as a guardian of rights and welfare, but this role can become compromised if the system is inundated with petitions that lack substantive merit. It is crucial for the courts to maintain their credibility and effectiveness in addressing significant issues, and this can only be achieved if PILs are filed with genuine intent and a clear purpose.
