CONTROL OVER SUBORDINATE COURTS

Subordinate courts are the courts of law that are subordinate to the apex court but do not include the court martial. The statement signifies that the subordinate courts are any courts that are established under the subordinate court Act for the administration of criminal justice. Through the assessment of the constitution of India to find the controlling body of these subordinate courts, it has been noted that control over “district court and subordinate courts including promotion and posting of, and grant of leave to, persons which belong to judicial service of the state shall be vested in the high courts”.

Subordinate Courts meaning and its types of cases

Through the definition of various articles, it has been noted that subordinate courts are the judicial courts which are subordinate to the high court of the state situated within its territorial jurisdiction. Through the detailed analysis of subordinate courts, it has been noted that each district court consists of various types of the lower court or subordinate court such as Chief Judicial Magistrate Court, First Class Judicial Magistrate Court”. In this court’s hearing, three cases consisted of criminal cases, revenue cases and civil cases. In civil cases, disputes between two or more people regarding property, divorce, breach of agreement and breach of contract is considered. On the other hand, in civil cases, disputes between landlord and tenant are also resolved. In civil cases, no punishment is awarded. On the other hand, under criminal cases, rape charges, robbery, theft, pick pocketing and physical murder are being considered. Under this kind of hearing, punishment is awarded if the accused is found guilty in those cases. 

Structure and jurisdiction of subordinate courts

 The state is being defined as a subordinate judiciary organizational structure, this results to be very slightly different from state to state. However, in most cases, there are three tiers of civil and criminal cases under control of the high court. These three tiers are the district judge, lower court and Nyay Panchayat. A district judge is the highest judicial authority consisting of regional and appellate authority in both criminal and civil issues. On the other hand, a lower court subordinate judge is located under the district or session court under the circumstance of a civil case. However, on the criminal side Chief Judicial Magistrate’s Court is located under district court. Under civil cases, a subordinate judge has precautionary jurisdiction without any restriction. While on another part Chief Judicial Magistrate can in criminal cases carry a maximum sentence of seven-year jail. Furthermore, Nyay Panchayat belongs to the lowest rung of the judiciary. The primary objective of this judiciary is to give easy access to justice and speedy disposal of cases. 

Control over subordinate courts and its significance

“Article 235 of Indian constitution” provides information about the control of subordinate courts, under this article it has been noted that control of district courts or a subordinate court lies in the high court of that state. It is clearly mentioned in “articles 235” that control over “district court and subordinate court  thereto which include in the posting and promotion of, and grant of leave to, a person who is belonging to the judicial services of any state holding any post which is not good for the post of district judge need to vested in the high court”. Based on this article it has been shown that the controlling body of these subordinate courts is the high court of a state. Hearing of three main cases such as revenue case, criminal case and civil case are considered under this subordinate court. The aim of these establishments is to reduce pressure on civil courts and speedy disposal of cases. 

An issue faced by subordinate courts

While analyzing barriers faced by subordinate courts it has been noted that a lower number of judges is the main constraint of the effective functioning of subordinate courts. In 2018 subordinate courts found a shortage of 5748 judicial officers which signified that due to the shortage of judicial officers the objectives of these courts were being affected. Moreover, a large number of pending cases are also major issues raised by these subordinate courts. In the year it has been recorded that over 30 millions pending cases are in all courts including Supreme Court, high court and subordinate court. 86% of all pending cases are being accounted for by subordinate courts.

Conclusion

Based on the whole study it can be concluded that subordinate courts are the courts which are established by passing an ordinance and are controlled by the high court. This study highlights that subordinate courts are mainly established to hear criminal cases, civil cases and revenue cases. These three types of cases are considered in subordinate courts. In civil cases, no punishment is rewarded but in the criminal case, punishment is awarded to the accused if he or she is found guilty. Analysis of detail about control of subordinate courts can control that section 235 of Indian Constitution deals with controlling of subordinate courts