The Jharkhand high court on Wednesday directed the state to fill up vacancies in the vigilance bureau to expedite pending cases.

Issuing the orders on a PIL filed by " Citizen's Cause", the division bench of Chief Justice Prakash Tatia and Justice P P Bhatt said 12 posts were lying vacant and six officers were likely to retire in a few months from now.

Observing that about 600 cases were pending with the bureau, the court said officers posted in the bureau should not be deputed for law and order duties like sending them to fairs. The bench also asked the state to direct those government officials who had not yet declared their property details.

The court also asked the director general of police to ensure submission of case diaries to respective trial courts to expedite pending cases.