Sri Lanka, Sept. 2 -- The Judicial Service Commission (JSC), has issued a directive to all District Judges, Magistrates, and High Court Judges, instructing them to clear all pending case backlogs by December 31st.

This order follows a recent collection of data on the number of outstanding cases in courts across the country.

The Judicial Service Commission has stressed that judges are directly accountable for the clearance of these cases in their respective courts.

To monitor progress, the commission will conduct local inspections and has also required all judges to submit monthly progress reports.

The JSC has further noted that addressing this backlog is a collective responsibility for all court staff, and has warned that disciplinary...