Supreme Court “Shocked” Over 47 Reserved Judgements Pending in Jharkhand High Court

The Supreme Court has expressed serious concern after discovering that 47 civil cases, where hearings were completed before January 31, 2025, are still awaiting judgements in the Jharkhand High Court.

A Bench of Justices MM Sundresh and Satish Chandra Sharma was informed of this delay through an affidavit filed by the Registrar General of the High Court. The affidavit revealed that out of 61 civil cases reserved for judgement, 47 are still pending—46 of them before a single judge and one before another.

Finding this situation deeply disturbing, the Supreme Court observed that such prolonged delays “shock the judicial conscience.” It directed that the matter be placed before a Bench led by Justice Surya Kant, who is already handling a related case on pending judgements in the same High Court.

Earlier, Justice Kant’s Bench had expressed concern over similar delays, where the Jharkhand High Court had not delivered judgements in home guard recruitment cases even two years after the hearings concluded. The Bench had suggested that judges prioritise issuing reasoned orders and, if necessary, take time off to clear the backlog.

The Supreme Court reiterated that High Courts must ensure timely pronouncement of reserved judgements to uphold public confidence in the justice system. The case, titled M/s Mivaan Steels Limited v. M/s Bharat Cooking Coal Limited (Diary No. 48094/2025), was listed for further consideration along with W.P. (C) No. 489/2025, which is scheduled to be heard on November 14, 2025.

Appearance: Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi, AoR Misha Rohatgi, Advocates Nakul Mohta and Aditya Dhingra appeared for the petitioner.