Parliament Question: Video conferencing facility in family courts

GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 754 ANSWERED ON 05/02/2026 VIDEO CONFERENCING FACILITY IN FAMILY COURTS 754. Shri S Niranjan Reddy: Will the Minister of Law and Justice be pleased to state: (a) whether Government has assessed the availability and adequacy of video-conferencing (VC) infrastructure in family courts across States and Union Territories, including dedicated VC rooms, secure platforms, trained staff and connectivity; (b) the State/UT-wise status of family courts equipped with functional VC facilities and the frequency of their use for hearings, mediation and counselling; (c) whether Government recognizes that VC infrastructure would help mitigate taxing nature of in-person family court proceedings; and (d) the steps taken for VC infrastructure, ensure privacy and data security and issue uniform guidelines to promote effective use of virtual and hybrid hearings in family courts? ANSWER MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE; AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS (SHRI ARJUN RAM MEGHWAL) (a) to (d): The Family Courts Act, 1984 provides for establishment of family courts by the State/UT Governments in consultation with their respective High Courts to promote conciliation and secure speedy settlement of disputes relating to marriage and family affairs and for matters connected therewith. Under Section 3(1)(a) of the Family Courts Act, it is mandatory for the State/UT Governments to set up a family court for every area in the State/UT comprising a city or a town whose population exceeds one million. In other areas of the States/UTs, the family courts may also be set up if the State/UT Governments deem it necessary. For providing digital infrastructure in all the courts including the Family Courts across the country, the Ministry of Law & Justice, Government of India is implementing eCourts Project 1in coordination with the eCommittee, Supreme Court of India. Under Phase III (2023- 2027) of this project, Rs. 228.48 crore have been earmarked for enhancing and upgrading the available infrastructure of video conferencing in various establishments, including courts, jail and hospitals based on size of establishment. However, the utilization of VC facilities for hearings, mediation and counselling in Family Courts, is subject of judicial discretion under the administrative control of the respective High Courts. Video conferencing facilities have been enabled in 3,240 court complexes and 1,272 jails across the country. Total 3.93 crore (2,95,33,143 in District & Subordinate courts and 97,89,552 in High Courts) case hearings through Video Conferencing have been conducted till 31.12.2025. The numbers of cases dealt with (virtual hearing) on video conferencing in High Courts and District Courts are at Annexure-I. These numbers include the cases dealt with in the Family Courts also. However, State/UT-wise data regarding usage of video conferencing facilities in Family Courts is not maintained separately. ‘Model Rules for Video Conferencing for Courts’ approved by the Hon’ble Supreme Court have been implemented in all High Courts and District Courts. In addition, Nyaya Shruti app has been launched in 2024 under the Inter-operable Criminal Justice System (ICJS), to facilitate virtual appearances and testimonies of accused persons, witnesses, police officials, prosecutors, scientific experts, prisoners etc. through video conferencing, saving both time and resources while expediting case resolutions. For effective implementation and integration of Nyaya Shruti with other pillars of ICJS, 20 High Courts have already notified the Nyaya Shruti Rules. Virtual hearings serve a significant purpose in ensuring access to justice. Using video conferencing, the lawyers and litigants may appear before the court from any location, thereby, easing the burden associated with physical appearances in court proceedings and saving considerable time and money, and benefitting underprivileged litigants and working professionals. Further, the lawyers may attend hearings at multiple locations at short notice and witnesses may be produced from safe locations. *** 2Annexure- I STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO RAJYA SABHA UNSTARRED QUESTION NO. 754 FOR ANSWER ON 05/02/2026 REGARDING VIDEO CONFERENCING FACILITY IN FAMILY COURTS Number of cases dealt with (virtual hearings) on video conferencing in High Courts and District Courts: S. High Court High Courts District Courts Grand Total No. 1 Allahabad 249060 6673818 6922878 2 Andhra Pradesh 421307 1457401 1878708 3 Bombay 94493 310408 404901 4 Calcutta 181591 185189 366780 5 Chhattisgarh 105175 459698 564873 6 Delhi 322201 7503131 7825332 7 Gauhati – Arunachal Pradesh 3574 8779 12353 8 Gauhati – Assam 267767 547962 815729 9 Gauhati – Mizoram 4294 13268 17562 10 Gauhati – Nagaland 1477 1278 2755 11 Gujarat 420087 234667 654754 12 Himachal Pradesh 186350 202660 389010 13 Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh 265337 598259 863596 14 Jharkhand 225235 745304 970539 15 Karnataka 1278460 192285 1470745 16 Kerala 280384 693555 973939 17 Madhya Pradesh 697374 1172912 1870286 18 Madras 1531620 479195 2010815 19 Manipur 55160 18811 73971 20 Meghalaya 6930 77483 84413 321 Orissa 359593 366450 726043 22 Patna 278212 3275264 3553476 23 Punjab & Haryana 653089 3734523 4387612 24 Rajasthan 254597 266506 521103 25 Sikkim 926 17890 18816 26 Telangana 1531472 201818 1733290 27 Tripura 22535 42737 65272 28 Uttarakhand 91252 51892 143144 Total 9789552 29533143 39322695 *** 4