Gujarat has slipped to the 11th position in the latest India Justice Report, which evaluates states on the performance of their justice delivery systems, including police, judiciary, prisons and legal aid services.
The report notes that states such as Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Tamil Nadu have performed better than Gujarat in overall justice system efficiency. It also highlights several structural challenges in the state’s justice framework, including underutilisation of the legal aid budget and a decline in the number of legal aid clinics and paralegal volunteers in rural areas, affecting access to justice for weaker sections.
In the judiciary category, Gujarat ranks 14th, with significant shortages of judicial staff. Around 38.5% of High Court judge posts and 31.1% of lower court positions remain vacant, while each High Court judge is handling more than 4,000 pending cases on average, contributing to delays in case disposal.
The report also points to pressure on the prison system, stating that jail occupancy has remained above capacity for several years. About 26.2% of inmates are undertrials, many of whom have been in custody for long periods without their cases being concluded.
Vacancies have also affected the State Human Rights Commission, where nearly 50% of staff posts and 35% of investigating officer positions are vacant, impacting its functioning and placing the state near the bottom of the rankings in this category.
Gujarat had ranked fourth in the 2022 edition of the report but has now fallen to 11th place, reflecting a decline in performance indicators related to staffing, infrastructure and institutional capacity. Opposition parties have urged the government to fill vacancies in the police, judiciary and human rights bodies, and to strengthen legal aid services to improve access to justice.