BANGALORE: Supreme Court judge and Executive Chairman of National Legal Services Authority Justice Altamas Kabir on Saturday hailed the Mega Lok Adalat model as an effective means to reduce pendency of cases in courts.
He was speaking at the valedictory programme of Mega Lok Adalats organised in Karnataka from October 2011 to January 2012.
“People are gaining awareness of alternative dispute resolution mechanisms, and the problem that arises for us is to learn how to manage the rush. Cases in courts are building up like a pressure cooker. This is where the Lok Adalat comes in,” Justice Kabir observed.
Referring to statistics, he said, “I know that in Madhya Pradesh, a total of three lakh cases were disposed of in a single day through Lok Adalats. In another instance, six lakh cases were disposed of in a day.” Justice Kabir added that this was leading to a healthy competition in solving pending cases.
Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court Justice Vikramajit Sen also praised the Lok Adalat model.
“The main purpose here is to facilitate mutually satisfactory settlements between parties. The Lok Adalat reaches out to all parties, something that cannot happen in courts,” he said. He added that disposal of pending cases would increase with more Lok Adalats.
Transgender
Appointed in HC
A transgender named Anu was appointed for a Group D post in Karnataka High Court, in what is believed to be the first such move. The appointment order was handed over to Anu by Justice Kabir. The appointment was made with immediate effect. “Anu was a born male. At the age of eight, she became a transgender. Suffering from unemployment, a transgender organisation approached us for help in rehabilitating Anu,” said Mustafa Hussain S A, High Court Legal Services Committee.
Lok Adalat is a system of alternative dispute resolution. There are no court fees nor any rigid procedural requirements, which speeds up the process. Parties can directly interact with the judge, which is not allowed in regular courts.
Lok Adalats in Karnataka
■ ;Principal Bench at Bangalore - 1,257 cases listed - 473 cases disposed of - `3,90,36,166 total compensation awarded
■ ;Circuit Bench at Dharwad - 284 cases listed - 111 cases disposed of- `86,58,000 total compensation awarded
■ ;Circuit Bench at Gulbarga - 43 cases listed - 18 cases disposed of- `23,65,000 total compensation awarded