The Supreme Court erupted in sharp criticism against its own Registry after discovering that a case meant to be listed “immediately after service” had been buried for over three years. Calling the lapse “disturbing,” the Court has now demanded an internal enquiry to unearth who was responsible for the delay.
A bench of Justices JK Maheshwari and Vijay Bishnoi was hearing a petition filed by a survivor of sexual violence challenging a bail order granted by the Madras High Court. The plea, lodged in 2022, languished unlisted while the accused secured a settlement and went on to have the entire criminal case quashed by the High Court under Section 482 CrPC.
By the time the matter finally appeared before the Supreme Court on September 23, 2025, the High Court had already buried the case, rendering the plea infructuous. But the judges were in no mood to let the Registry off the hook.
The Court noted that notice had been issued on May 13, 2022, with clear directions to list the case once service was complete. Respondents were duly served on May 30, 2022. What followed was a deafening silence—three years and three months of inaction.
“The Registrar (Judicial) shall conduct an enquiry and place before us a report explaining why the matter was not listed despite a specific order of this Court, and also identify the officer responsible,” the bench ordered, signaling that administrative negligence will not be brushed aside as a clerical error.
The case itself may have dissolved into technical futility, but the Court made it clear: when justice is delayed because of lapses within its own walls, accountability must follow.