New criminal court planned in Yerawada, Pune

A new criminal court will be built in Yerawada, Pune. The foundation stone was laid by Supreme Court Justice Abhay Oka at a ceremony attended by several notable figures, including Union Minister Murlidhar Mohol and various judges from the Bombay High Court. Justice Oka mentioned an action plan aimed at resolving long-standing court cases. Many cases in India have been pending for 25 to 30 years. He called on lawyers to help implement this plan effectively. Pune is the largest judicial district in the country, with a significant backlog of cases. Currently, Maharashtra has 5.76 million pending cases, with 3.87 million classified as criminal. Pune itself has about 743,000 pending cases, with many of these overdue by five years or more. Justice Oka stressed the need for better court facilities and infrastructure to handle this situation. Union Minister Mohol pointed out that Pune's growing population adds to the challenges faced by the judicial system. He believes the new court will help reduce congestion at existing courts, particularly the Shivajinagar court. In addition to the new Yerawada court, two buildings with additional courtrooms are being constructed at the Shivajinagar site. The state government is reportedly supporting these efforts with funding for judicial infrastructure.