New Delhi, Mar 18 (PTI) Massive vacancy and mounting case backlog of more than five lakh are undermining the effectiveness of the consumer grievance redressal system in the country, a first-of-its-kind report based on assessment of functioning of consumer courts from 2021 to 2025 said.
More than half the posts of presidents and members in the state consumer disputes redressal commissions (SCDRC) remain vacant, the Consumer Justice Report prepared by the India Justice Report (IJR) said.
The report said that between 2020 and 2024, the pendency of cases increased by 21 per cent, from 87,545 to 5.15 lakh.
While the Consumer Protection Act mandates cases to be resolved “as expeditiously as possible” within a timeline of 3-5 months, the report found that more than one-third of cases remained unresolved for over three years, far exceeding the mandated timeline.
In Kerala, Jammu and Kashmir and Jharkhand, more than two in three cases (70 to 80 per cent) were pending for more than three years, it said.
Releasing the report, former Supreme Court judge Justice S K Kaul lamented the massive vacancy crisis and mounting case pendency, and said these are eroding the confidence of consumers in the redressal mechanism.
“The will of Parliament is reflected in legislation, but if the legislation is made non-functional, the will is also defeated. The Consumer Protection Act, 2019, was expected to improve consumer protection capacity in the country.
“But it is concerning to find that more than half of the president and member positions in state commissions are vacant, and not all districts have formed district commissions… It erodes the confidence of consumers in grievance redressal in the consumer commissions,” he said.
According to the report, consumers are mostly hassled and aggrieved about the deficiency in service, especially in insurance, housing and banking sectors.
The report, based on public data obtained through Right to Information and parliamentary replies, found that as of 2025, about half of the state commissions and one-third of the district commissions lacked a sitting president, while nearly 40 per cent of the 159 sanctioned member posts were vacant.
Seven SCDRCs – Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Arunachal Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh – had more than 60 per cent vacancy among member positions, it said.
Notably, Arunachal Pradesh, Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh had recorded no members in their SCDRCs, it said.
Out of data provided by 20 SCDRCs, only 10 – Haryana, Kerala, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, West Bengal, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Delhi – had a president throughout the last five years, the report said.
There is a rising trend with regard to vacant president posts in the state commissions, which increased from only two SCDRCs functioning without a president in 2021 to 10 in 2025, it said.
The report categorised states by population to ensure fair comparison as to which state performed better in the disposal of consumer cases.
Among the 19 large and mid-sized states, Andhra Pradesh secured the first rank, followed by Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan.
Andhra Pradesh was lauded for its efficient budget utilisation, and for having the lowest rate of long-term pendency – only 4.8 per cent of its cases have been pending for more than three years.
In the small states category, Meghalaya took the top spot, followed by Sikkim and Himachal Pradesh, it said.
Conversely, states like Telangana (ranked 19th among large states) and Manipur (ranked 9th among small states) find themselves at the bottom of the capacity index.
The study also said that between 2020 and 2024, 88.5 per cent of the total 7.64 lakh cases filed in all 35 state and 68,551 district commissions had been disposed of.
The highest case clearance rate (CCR) of 114.6 per cent was noted in Tamil Nadu, having cleared 29,585 cases out of 25,825 filed.
Among larger states, Maharashtra had the highest filing of cases but the lowest CCR, as 65 per cent of 32,382 cases remained pending.
The findings assume significance in light of a recent Supreme Court intervention addressing the financial burden on states with low caseloads.
In February 2026, invoking Article 142 of the Constitution, the apex court allowed high courts to hear consumer appeals where state commissions are non-functional or not constituted due to low pendency.
The top court directed the transfer of pending cases to jurisdictional high courts, where a single judge would decide them, preferably within three months, while permitting smaller states to propose alternative mechanisms.
The study also flagged under-utilisation of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms.
On gender diversity, the report found that representation remained limited to minimum compliance.
In 2024, it was found that among 19 state commissions, only Delhi and Sikkim had a woman president.
Among overall members and presidents, one-third of the state commissions were recorded to be women in nine SCDRCs in 2024, more than the 20 per cent recommended by the Consumer Protection Act. Jharkhand, Kerala and Himachal Pradesh did not even have a single woman as president or members, violating the statutory mandate.
Across five years from 2021 to 2025, from the 14 SCDRCS which provided data, women’s share among members and presidents in these SCDRCs declined from an average of 35 per cent in 2021 to 29 per cent in 2025, it said.
The IJR called for urgent reforms, recommending time-bound appointments, better staffing aligned with caseloads, improved budget utilisation, transparent data publication, forward-looking capacity planning, and greater reliance on mediation to reduce pendency. PTI MDB SJK SJK ARI ARI ARI
This report is auto-generated from PTI news service. ThePrint holds no responsibility for its content.