How is CJI Kant Restructuring the SC’s Artificial Intelligence Committee?
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New Delhi, Dec 10 (NationPress) Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant has restructured the Supreme Court’s Artificial Intelligence Committee, tasked with leading the integration, advancement, and implementation of AI technologies within the higher judiciary and lower courts, as per an official announcement made on Wednesday.
The statement reveals that the newly formed committee will be chaired by Justice P.S. Narasimha from the apex court, alongside members including Justice Sanjeev Sachdeva, the Chief Justice of the Madhya Pradesh High Court; Justice Raja Vijayaraghavan V. from the Kerala High Court; Justice Anoop Chitkara of the Punjab & Haryana High Court; and Justice Suraj Govindaraj from the Karnataka High Court.
Anupam Patra, OSD (Registrar) (Technology), Supreme Court, will act as the Committee’s Member-Secretary and Convenor, while Ashish J. Shiradhonkar, a member of the eCommittee of the Supreme Court, is invited as a Special Invitee.
The CJI has directed the Committee to maintain its role in “guiding and supervising initiatives concerning the integration, development, and deployment of artificial intelligence tools and systems” within the Supreme Court and subordinate judiciary. This initiative aims to improve efficiency, accessibility, and transparency within the justice delivery framework.
This reorganization comes shortly after the government updated the Lok Sabha on the establishment of an AI Committee to investigate the utilization of emerging technologies in the judicial sector, noting that no formal guidelines or policies have been established as AI tools are still in a controlled pilot phase.
Minister of State for Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal informed Parliament that the judiciary is exercising caution, addressing concerns related to algorithmic bias, language and translation barriers, data privacy and security, as well as the necessity for manual verification of AI-generated outputs.
Currently, during the AI pilot phase, the eCommittee of the Supreme Court reports no systemic bias or unintended content issues, he added.
MoS Meghwal emphasized that the e-Committee has already developed limited-use AI tools such as the Legal Research Analysis Assistant (LegRAA) and Digital Courts 2.1, featuring voice-to-text capabilities (ASR-SHRUTI) and translation options (PANINI), designed to assist judges in research, documentation, and case management.
Additionally, the minister pointed out the increasing issue of fabricated and altered digital content being presented in courts, indicating that such offenses are prosecuted under relevant sections of the Information Technology Act, 2000 and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.