Only Artificial Intelligence (AI) can Transform Tottering Judicial System

Recently, a TV journalist asked former CJI Ranjan Gogoi why did he not go to court when a lady employee of the court levelled allegations against him, which he thought to be false?? Without batting an eyelid, he replied that who would go to the court to face further harassment? In a way, he echoed the sentiments of millions of people of the country about the Indian judicial system. At a time when algorithms and Artificial Intelligence (AI) have brought about inconceivable changes in the field of science, technology, medicine, art, architecture, transportation, communication, war and weaponry or other areas that we can think of, how long law and legal field will remain untouched of it? Genome technology is out to achieve what was being mentioned in myths. When men and women of extraordinary physical and mental strength can be had with the help of technology guided by AI, that too without the consummation of men and women, then why no efforts are being made to increase the use of Artificial Intelligence in the justice delivery system?

Recently two scientific experiments in China have woken up the whole world out of slumber. One is the development of fusion of an artificial sun, which is said to be five times hotter than the real sun and the other is digitisation to streamline case handling and use of cyberspace for cloud computing of the court cases. One may have reservations about the Judicial Systems of China but how can one ignore the breakthrough that she has been able to develop an easy, cheap, and expeditious justice delivery system? Our system is horribly complex, expensive, and time-consuming. It is true that the justice delivery system of China and Islamic countries is a hoax, and it cannot be followed in democratic countries like ours, but should the efforts of innovations with the help of Artificial Intelligence not be undertaken in India when millions of cases are lying piled in the dark rooms of courts? The Judicial system in India has become a nightmare for the people of the country, which has given rise to corruption in the system.

According to reports, the Chinese authorities have given a glimpse of the Cyber Courts to journalists, and they found that these Courts have delivered the judgments with more accuracy than the human judges in the courts. This system has been lauded by the litigants consisting of both plaintiffs and defendants. It has also removed the age-long complaints of ‘justice delayed is justice denied.’ In this system, one can register the complaints online and log on for their court hearing. In this manner a total of 118, 764 cases were filed in the Supreme People’s Court and out of it 88, 401 were concluded in one year. It has already been in 12 provinces of the country.

Chinese have adopted the Blockchain method, which is being taught in our IITs and Computer Science Departments of other Engineering Colleges. In this method ‘recording information in a way that makes it difficult or impossible to change, hack, cheat or tamper with’ A blockchain is essentially a digital ledger of transactions that is duplicated and distributed across the entire network of computer systems. Any country which does not march along the technological growth is bound to lag behind in all the parameters of development.

Google has, no doubt, changed the very methodology of research, storage of information and speed of transmission. The time has come that the maximum use of AIs should be made in the justice delivery system of the country. It will make the language of the courts simple and comprehensible, which is obtuse and complex in our courts. The initiative in this regard has to be taken more by the scientists and the government of the day than by the judges and advocates, who are trained to walk more on the beaten path than opting for any innovation. Unfortunately, our judicial system creates firewalls for any type of newness rather than embracing it with an open mind and arms.