Role of the Regional Languages in Courts of Sikkim in Access to Justice

This observation holds particular significance for multilingual states such as Sikkim, where diverse linguistic communities and geographical isolation shape the everyday functioning of the judicial system. Sikkim is divided into Six districts—Gangtok, Namchi, Gyalshing, Mangan, Pakyong and Soreng—each housing a district court supported by subordinate courts. These courts conduct a substantial portion of their proceedings in regional languages such as Nepali, Bhutia, and Lepcha. This reflects the linguistic realities of the population, particularly as many litigants, victims, and accused persons come from remote rural areas and are often unfamiliar with English or Hindi. Allowing oral submissions, pleadings, and witness testimonies in regional languages ensures clarity, encourages participation by ordinary citizens, and strengthens the fairness of the judicial process. However, linguistic accessibility becomes limited at the level of the High Court. Article 348(1)(a) of the Constitution mandates English as the primary language for proceedings in all High Courts and the Supreme Court. Article 348(2) allows the optional use of Hindi or other official state languages in High Court proceedings with the prior consent of the President, yet all judgments, decrees, and orders must still be delivered in English. The Official Languages Act, 1963 reinforces this framework. Under Section 7, the Governor, with Presidential approval, may authorise High Court judgments in a state language only if accompanied by an official English translation, thereby maintaining the primacy of English in higher judicial forums. For Sikkim, where Nepali is the dominant language of daily communication, these provisions creates a structural divide between subordinate courts that operate comfortably in regional languages and the High Court that remains English-centric. Although the Civil Procedure Code (Section 137) and BNSS (Section 307) empower state governments to prescribe regional languages for district and subordinate courts significantly improving accessibility the High Court’s linguistic rigidity continues to hinder full comprehension for many litigants. To address this gap, Sikkim has appointed language translators to facilitate understanding and support the increasing use of regional languages within the judicial process.