Language in Courts and Government

How the use of English in higher courts and official documents creates barriers for ordinary citizens, and efforts to translate judgments into Indian languages.

Language affects access to courts and government.

Courts

Under Article 348, proceedings in the Supreme Court and High Courts are in English by default.
Some High Courts allow Hindi or regional languages with approval.

Barriers

Litigants who don’t read English may not understand judgments about their own cases.

Translation

The Supreme Court began translating judgments into Indian languages with AI tools, launching SUVAS in 2019, and later an e-SCR portal with translations.

Government

Forms, laws and websites in English only raise transaction costs for citizens.

Economics

Language barriers increase reliance on middlemen such as agents and lawyers.

The land dispute

A farmer receives a High Court judgment in English and must pay someone to explain it.

Thinking court language is a minor issue

It affects whether citizens understand their own cases.

Key takeaways

Higher courts use English by default.
This creates barriers for many citizens.
The Supreme Court translates judgments with AI.
Language barriers create reliance on middlemen.