Madras High Court goes paperless with e-stamps, EPS and Chief Justice inaugurate new facility

Inaugurating the facility, Chief Justice Indira Banerjee said, “With the new system in place, delays in filing cases due to unavailability of stamp papers can now be avoided. The facility enables anyone to pay court fee from the comfort of their home.” 

However, noting that the refund process may still require some physical endorsement, the Chief Justice lauded the introduction of e-stamps as a step forward. Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami inaugurated exclusive e-stamp counters established in the high court’s principal and Madurai. 

“The state government has implemented the facility to curb the issue of counterfeit stamp papers. Also, the Government is keen to introduce new technology and improve the infrastructure for speedy disposal of cases,” he said.

Thee chief minister present at the ceremony also highlighted that the facility would be soon extended to all the courts across the state. 

Noting that there has been an eight to 10 per cent increase in payment of court fees every year, Justice T S Sivagnanam, MHC, Computer Committee Chairman said, the e-stamps have come at a time when there is a lack of storage for stamp papers. But now, whatever be the denomination is, a single receipt, which is user friendly and tamper proof, will be issued.

When a litigant opts to use the facility, a unique receipt number and bar code would be issued. Once this is produced before the Registry, the stamp gets locked and verified ruling out any scope of being misused. 

Tamil Nadu is the eighth state to implement the e-stamp facility. Not only will it help the judiciary go paperless, it will also prevent reuse of stamps, loss and sale of its counterfeit copies. The payment application is being handled by Stock Holding Corporation of India Ltd.