Right To Speedy Trial

The idea behind the Right to Speedy Trial is to resolve matters as quickly as possible to improve the effectiveness and reliability of the judicial system. Right to Speedy Trial’s primary goal is to promote justice in society. It was first mentioned in the “Magna Carta”, a landmark document of British law. It is one of the fundamental human rights as without Speedy Trial justice can not be said to be done. It has been validated by almost all international charters and conventions. 

Speedy Trial as a Fundamental Right:

• Speedy Trial as a Fundamental Right is inherent in the “guarantee of life and personal liberty” enshrined in Article 21 of the Constitution of India. If interpreted, the phrase “Life and Liberty” includes a person’s right to a speedy trial. Everyone has a right to live a free and healthy life.
• According to Article 21: “Protection of Life and Personal Liberty: No person shall be deprived of his life or personal liberty except according to procedure established by law.”
• In the Maneka Gandhi case, Justice Bhagwati observed that- “The term ‘personal liberty’ in Article 21 has the broadest scope and embraces several rights that together make up a person’s liberty; certain of these rights have been elevated to the level of independent basic rights and are further protected by Article 19″
•  Any accused who is denied this Right of Speedy Trial may appeal to the Supreme Court under Article 32  and High Court under Article 226 to have that right enforced.

Landmark Cases Related to Speedy Trial:

1. Hussainara Khatoon & Ors. vs Home Secretary, State of Bihar 1979

• This case gave rise to the idea of a speedy trial, it was held that if convicted, under trial inmates’ continued incarceration in jail would be completely unjustifiable and in violation of the fundamental right under Article 21.
• Excessive delays violate Article 21 of the Constitution, such as when a case drags on for more than 11 years without any progress for no faults of the accused-petitioner. 
• Everyone has the fundamental right to expeditiousness, which cannot be violated unless any of the parties can be accused of the delay. The Right to petition for bail is granted to the accused when the trial is unnecessarily delayed.
•  It was also held that no adjournment will be given unless and until the judiciary is powerless to change the circumstances. The judiciary is in charge of monitoring convicts who are awaiting trials and bringing them to justice. A person can not be deprived of their Rights due to Overcrowded courts, inadequate resources, or fiscal deficiency. 

2. Katar Singh vs the State of Punjab

•  It was declared that the Right to Speedy Trial was deemed to be a crucial component of the fundamental rights to life and liberty.
• Thus, it can be concluded that the Right to a Speedy Trial is the right of the accused and it encompasses all the stages including the investigation, inquiry, trial, appeal, revision, and retrial.

Provisions under the Code of Criminal procedure (CrPC):

Also, there are various legislative provisions under the Code of Criminal procedure, 1973:

1.  It is mandatory under Section 173(1) of the CrPC to carry out all investigations mandated by Chapter XII of the CrPC without undue delay.
2. According to Section 157(1) of the CrPC, a police officer who receives information about the committing of an offence is required to promptly transmit a report about it to the magistrate and go to the scene to conduct an investigation.
3. Section 207 of the CrPC grants the accused the right to get copies of- Police Report, FIR, Confession and the Statement recorded, any other document forwarded to the magistrate.

Issues and Challenges Related to Speedy Trial:

• Frequent adjournment– The primary reason for the delay in the cases is the court’s arbitrary decision to grant an adjournment on unreasonable grounds.
• Judge-Population Ratio– There are now very few judges available when taking into account the size of the nation and the backlog of cases.
• Lack of Accountability– Because of the independence of the judiciary, some judges may feel that they are not answerable to anyone, as a result, many a time this factor leads judges to complacency, ignorance, and other negative behaviors that ultimately cause cases to be delayed.
• Inadequate Infrastructure– The lower courts’ infrastructure is extremely disappointing. Although the Supreme Court and High Court are having good infrastructure this is not the case with the lower courts.
• Huge Pendency– Due to the huge backlog of cases, matters that would typically be resolved in a matter of months now take years to do so. 

Consequences of Delay in a Trial:

1. Delay in a trial amounts to a delay in Justice. Delay in delivering justice has the same effect as denial of justice.
2. Delay welcomes the abuse of the judicial process. The guiding principle of our criminal law is defined by the expression “Innocent until proven guilty”
3. A delayed case adds both financial and emotional burden. It causes prejudice against the accused. The proceedings which run over several years are time-consuming and pretty expensive.

Some Measures Related to Speedy Trial:

• The adjournment system must be changed such that it is restricted to a certain amount, and anyone who applies for an adjournment for dubious reasons should be fined.
• It is important to have increased judges to population ratio which will speed up the case disposal.
• To ensure accountability and quality representation by strengthening the monitoring of legal aid lawyers’ performance.
• Efficient Management of the courts is crucial.
• A comprehensive strategy and coordinated efforts from the federal government and state governments are needed to address this issue.

“Justice delayed is justice denied”- William E. Gladstone. Hence, Speedy Trial is crucial to prevent injustice, unjust imprisonment, and oppressive treatment of prisoners by providing fair and just trials to all its citizens. Despite being a fundamental right, the right to a speedy trial nevertheless needs empirical research and a thorough legal framework to be effectively applied. It is pivotal to provide every citizen with a life that is at least somewhat respectable since we live in a civilized society that is governed by law and a system of rules.