Punjab Govt’s Decision to Reform in Judicial System

June 26, 2026

MIn India’s current judicial system, it’s a common complaint that justice is never delivered on time. Victims are forced to endure adjournments. Witnesses or accused persons, doctors or government officials, and even criminal experts must appear in court on certain dates and record statements. Clearly, everyone doesn’t always arrive on the scheduled date. Therefore, adjournments are pushed back.

It’s clear that even important cases take 30 years to be decided. The Punjab government has taken the initiative to address this issue through a major administrative decision.

A major change in Punjab is that video conferencing has been approved for court hearings in over a thousand locations. It’s not that video conferencing wasn’t used before, but it was only used in special circumstances. The change now is that video conferencing is now permitted even under normal circumstances.

While police stations are currently excluded, video conferencing from hospitals, schools, and government offices will also be permitted. The court will incorporate this into its normal hearings.

In sensitive cases, there will be no need to locate witnesses and bring them to court. This will save time and eliminate the risk to the safety of witnesses.

The Punjab government has stated that the video conferencing rules were enacted on April 10, 2026. They have now been made an integral part of the entire system. Any amendments made to these rules for a fair trial by the High Court will automatically become applicable.

The Central Government emphasized the increased use of digital technology in the Indian Civil Security Code 2023. This has now been clearly implemented in Punjab.

The government has clarified that the court has authorized video conferencing inside and outside all government offices, government and private educational institutions, primary health centers, community health centers, public sector undertakings, state government corporations, boards, commissions, and authorities, and all central and state prisons.

This is a significant administrative decision by the Punjab government.

A new notification has been issued for this. A total of one thousand places have been authorized. This order has now been implemented by cancelling the earlier practice of taking special orders for video conferencing.

Earlier, all the people involved in the cases used to come to the courts personally and keep taking dates to avoid coming. Thus, the verdicts of the cases used to reach with great delay. Justice could not be delivered on time.

Now, with the new decision of video conferencing, the system will change to a great extent. Witnesses will need to go to the court much less. The testimony of doctors and experts will be given on time.

Direct appearance from jails will reduce security costs. Unnecessary delays in hearing cases will be reduced. People traveling from distant lands will receive relief, and the digital justice system will be strengthened.

Timely judicial decisions ensure timely justice for litigants, while punishment for the guilty will be less delayed. This is a very important decision in itself. If digitization has occurred, its benefits must be taken.

The decision is welcome, but to ensure that it doesn’t create any problems, emphasis should also be placed on proper implementation and management of the system.