In this article you will learn about the Working of Lok Adalats in Political Science.
Working of Lok Adalats
Lok Adalat is a forum for resolving disputes outside the formal judicial system. It aims to provide a quicker, cost-effective, and more accessible way to settle disputes. It is based on the principles of conciliation, mediation, and compromise. It is composed of retired judges, legal experts, and social activists who work together to resolve disputes between parties. Lok Adalat can hear civil, criminal, and matrimonial cases.
The working of Lok Adalat can be explained in the following steps :
- Application : The parties involved in the dispute apply to the Lok Adalat to resolve their dispute.
- Summoning : The Lok Adalat issues a notice to the parties to appear before it on a specific date.
- Hearing : The Lok Adalat hears the dispute and tries to bring the parties to a mutually acceptable solution.
- Conciliation : The Lok Adalat encourages the parties to reach a settlement through conciliation and mediation. The Lok Adalat does not impose any decision on the parties. The parties are free to accept or reject the settlement.
- Award : If the parties reach a settlement, the Lok Adalat records the settlement and passes an award. The award has the same legal status as a decree passed by a court.
- Enforcement : The award passed by the Lok Adalat is final and binding on the parties. It can be enforced as a civil court decree.
The working of each Lok Adalat is usually governed by the following rules :
- Only such cases can come before Lok Adalat as have been pending in regular courts.
- A party to a dispute can bring the case before the Lok Adalat by submitting a petition.
- The District and Session Judge of a District has all the information about the date, time and place of holding the Lok Adalat.
On the fixed day the party to the dispute attends the meeting of the Lok Adalat and tries to solve the dispute with mutual consent and agreement.
When the Lok Adalat is in a position to arrive at an agreed decision, it is brought to the notice of the judicial officer presiding over the Lok Adalat. The judicial officer then issues or judicial decree in respect of the decision made and it finally settles the case. The decision is then communicated to the court in which the case had been pending.
Since all decisions of the Lok Adalat are based upon the mutual consent and agreement of all the parties to the dispute, no appeal can be later on made against its decision. The decision of the Lok Adalat is final and the parties to the dispute abide by it.
The procedure followed by a Lok Adalat is neither very formal nor rigid. All decisions are made by encouraging the parties to negotiate and accept a mutually agreed settlement.
Usually, the Lok Adalats hear following types of cases :
- Accident cases involving the issues of compensation.
- Cases relating to marriage and divorce.
- Compensation cases in labour disputes.
- Insurance compensation cases.
- Loan cases.
However, a Lok Adalat cannot hear any such case in which the Government is a party.
Lok Adalats have been doing good work in helping the people to get the disputes settled in a speedier, effective and less expensive way. These have played a commendable role in lessening the burden of the judicial system as well as in making the judicial system less expensive. The poor and downtrodden people can depend upon the Lok Adalat system for getting some of their litigation cases settled, that means getting freedom from court botherations, appeals and re-appeals in higher courts.
This article on Working of Lok Adalats in Political Science is contributed by Dipshikha Anand. If you like LawStudyPoint.com do follow us on our Twitter handle.