LUCKNOW, July 30 -- The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court expressed serious concern over the prolonged pendency of final reports submitted by police in criminal cases and directed all district and sessions judges in Uttar Pradesh to submit details regarding such cases pending in subordinate courts. The court observed that nearly 50,000 final reports were pending for orders in Lucknow district courts alone and said a similar situation existed in other districts of the state. Observing that such delays adversely affect the administration of criminal justice, the bench of justice Tej Pratap Tiwari, in an order passed on July 21, sought district-wise data from all district and sessions judges across Uttar Pradesh regarding the pendency of final reports and the measures being taken to clear the backlog. The directions were issued while hearing a petition related to a case registered at Gosaiganj police station, where police had submitted a final report on July 11, 2020, but no order has been passed on it so far. The petitioners told the court that they are businessmen and frequently travel abroad. Due to the pendency of the case, they are facing difficulties in renewal of their passports. In a strong observation, the bench added that these final reports have been pending for years, not due to the parties, but because of the "indifference on the part of the presiding officers". The court said while contested matters cannot be decided in haste, it was difficult to understand how final reports submitted after completion of investigation could be kept pending for such long periods. "It causes unnecessary hardship to accused persons against whom police have submitted final reports after completing the investigation," the court said. The court sought reports from all district and sessions judges through the registrar general, detailing the number of pending final reports, reasons for the delay and the action plan prepared for their early disposal. The matter has been listed for further hearing on August 20. Manoj Kumar Singh...