Supreme Court Issues Guidelines for Day-to-Day Criminal Trials
The Supreme Court of India has issued a landmark order directing trial courts to conduct criminal cases on a day-to-day basis in line with Section 309 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC), now reflected in Section 346 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita (BNSS), 2023. This move is aimed at curbing the long delays in trials and ensuring the constitutional mandate of a speedy trial under Article 21 of the Constitution. Background: Need for Speedy Trials A bench of Justices JB Pardiwala and KV Viswanathan highlighted that many criminal trials in India stretch for months or even years due to prolonged witness examinations and frequent adjournments. The court observed that the earlier practice — where important and sensitive cases were conducted on a day-to-day basis nearly three decades ago — has largely been abandoned. It emphasized the need to revive that tradition to strengthen judicial efficiency. Supreme Court’s Key Observations The bench criticized the pieceme...