Virtual Courts

The Virtual Courts, an initiative of eCommittee, Supreme Court of India is a concept, aimed at doing away with the presence of a litigant or lawyer in the court and for adjudication of cases on a virtual platform. This concept has been evolved to efficiently utilize court resources and to provide litigants with an effective avenue to settle disputes. Currently, the virtual courts are handling cases pertaining only to traffic challan cases, which have not only reduced the costs of litigation but have also simplified the procedure for redressal of traffic challan cases. Over 5.26 crore cases (5,26,53,142) have been handled by 28 virtual courts and in more than 56 lakhs (56,51,204) cases, online fines of more than Rs. 579.40 crore have been realized till 30.06.2024. The detailed breakup of cases dealt through virtual courts across India is at Annexure- I. As on 30.06.2024, there are 28 such courts in 21 States / UTs viz. Delhi (2), Haryana, Chandigarh, Gujarat (2), Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, Kerala (2), Maharashtra (2), Assam, Chhattisgarh, Jammu and Kashmir (2), Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, Meghalaya, Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand (2), Madhya Pradesh, Tripura, West Bengal, Rajasthan and Manipur (2). However, it is pertinent to mention here that the establishment of Virtual Courts is an administrative matter that falls strictly within the purview and domain of the concerned High Court. The Central Government has no direct role in the matter.

Under the eCourts Project Phase-III, there is a provision of the establishment of an additional 1150 Virtual Courts under the jurisdiction of respective High Courts for creating a robust digital infrastructure for which an allocation of Rs. 413.08 crore has been made to assist the courts in tackling the pendency issue.

Source: PIB Delhi (Release ID: 2043474)