Daijiworld Media Network – New Delhi

New Delhi, Aug 24: The Delhi High Court has directed all lower courts in the national capital to give priority to cases related to Army, Navy, Air Force, and paramilitary personnel, ensuring early hearings and speedy disposal.

A circular issued on August 7 by Registrar General Arun Bhardwaj, on the instructions of the Chief Justice, referred to provisions of the Army Act, 1950, Navy Act, 1957, and Air Force Act, 1950. It also cited the Indian Soldiers (Litigation) Act, 1925, amended in 2018, which provides additional safeguards to serving soldiers.

Copies of the directive have been sent to Principal District and Sessions Judges across all Delhi courts, including Tis Hazari, Rohini, Saket, Dwarka, Karkardooma, and Patiala House.

Welcoming the move, Supreme Court judge Justice Surya Kant said he hoped other High Courts would follow Delhi’s example to address the legal challenges of soldiers. Justice Kant, who is also Executive Chairman of NALSA and next in line to become the Chief Justice of India, recently launched the ‘NALSA Veer Parivar Sahayata Yojana 2025’ in Srinagar to help soldiers and their families with legal aid.

“Soldiers face extreme conditions to protect the country, and the judiciary must ensure their families are not deprived of legal support,” Justice Kant told NDTV. He said NALSA will coordinate with the defence department to provide legal clinics at district and state Sainik Boards, with ex-servicemen-turned-lawyers and trained family members engaged as legal aid counsels and volunteers.