Overview
- A Lucknow bench of the Allahabad High Court has directed the Registrar General to obtain court- and district-wise counts of pending police final reports and the reasons for delay from every District & Sessions Judge in Uttar Pradesh.
- The court said roughly 50,000 final reports are awaiting orders in the Lucknow judgeship alone and warned that similar backlogs exist across other districts.
- Judges were sharply criticized for ‘indifference’ and told to prioritise matters that have been pending for years, especially where notices to complainants or informants have already been issued.
- Petitioners told the court that the long pendency is causing real harms, for example blocking passport renewals, and the bench said preliminary procedural gaps such as failure to serve notices often keep final reports idle.
- The High Court invoked supervisory jurisdiction under criminal procedure provisions, required written action plans for early disposal, and listed the matter for a progress hearing on August 20, 2026.