A court without a court: India launches massive reform to tackle millions of backlogs

The Supreme Court of India has announced the launch of a new initiative aimed at overcoming the critical overload of the judicial system. This is the Samadhan Samaroh 2026 program, which provides for the resolution of a significant part of disputes without a full-fledged trial – through agreements between the parties.

Today, the Indian justice system is facing an unprecedented load: almost 56 million pending cases have accumulated in courts of various instances, of which about 95 thousand are in the Supreme Court of India itself. According to Law Minister Arjun Ram Meghwal, the main burden falls on lower-level courts, where about 48 million proceedings are concentrated. One of the key reasons is the shortage of judges and the delay in processes.

The new program emphasizes alternative methods of dispute resolution, in particular mediation. The parties will be encouraged to find compromises without lengthy court battles, and for this purpose special online tools and coordination mechanisms are being introduced.

The initiative is actively supported by Chief Justice Surya Kant, who emphasizes that mediation allows for achieving a mutually beneficial result, saving time and resources. According to him, an agreement between the parties is not a concession, but an effective legal strategy.

The final stage of the program will be special sessions of the Lok Adalat format – an alternative dispute resolution mechanism based on the voluntary consent of the parties. They are scheduled for August 21-23.

It is expected that the implementation of the initiative will significantly reduce the workload on the courts and will be an important step towards modernizing the Indian justice system.