Motorists drive into stern arms of road court

EMN Dimapur, March 12 It was a bad hair day for some drivers and vehicle owners in Dimapur who had faulty documents when they ran into an impromptu Lok Adalat on Saturday. Documents of 400 vehicles were checked during the People’s Court and out of which, 187 were found to be questionable. The defaulters were fine, the legal services informed in a press release on March 12. The establishment of the deputy commissioner of police (traffic) imposed fines amounting to Rs. 41,450 on the day. The Dimapur District Legal Services Authority (DDLSA) with the assistance of the office of the deputy commissioner of police (traffic) and the District Transport Office conducted a mobile Lok Adalat on March 12, at the DC court junction and 7th Mile in Dimapur. Lok Adalat is a system of alternative dispute resolution developed in India through the Legal Services Authorities Act of 1987. It roughly means “People’s court”. ‘The purpose of the Saturday Lok Adalat was to create awareness as regards the mandatory requirement of possession of valid vehicle documents,’ the organizers stated in a press release issued to the media on Saturday. Documents of 400 vehicles were checked during the event. Out of which, 187 were found to be defaulters, the press release stated. “In this regard, the personnel of the DCP (traffic) imposed fines amounting to a total of Rs. 41,450 on the defaulting vehicles. The DDLSA has been conducting such Lok Adalats in cooperation with the concerned authorities on regular basis as part of its legal services programme,” the organizers stated. N Kanuo, the chairman of the DDLSA, also spoke on the impact of Legal Service Authorities Act in the State and other beneficial laws on the ongoing youth camp organized by youth department of Chakhesang Baptist Church of Dimapur. India has had a long history of resolving disputes through the mediation of village elders. The system of Lok Adalats is based on the principles of the Panch Parmeshwar of Gram Panchayats which were also proposed by Mahatma Gandhi. The idea of Lok Adalat was mainly advocated by Justice PN Bhagwati, a former Chief Justice of India. Lok Adalat is a non-adversarial system, whereby mock courts (called Lok Adalats) are held by the State Authority, District Authority, Supreme Court Legal Services Committee, High Court Local Services Committee, or Taluk Legal Services Committee. They are held periodically for exercising such jurisdiction as they determine. These are usually presided over by retired judges, social activists, or other members of the legal profession. The Lok Adalats can deal with all civil cases, matrimonial disputes, land disputes, partition/property disputes, labour disputes etc., and compoundable criminal cases. The first Lok Adalat was held on March 14, 1982 in Gujarat. Most of the cases are motor accident related disputes settled through Lok adalats. Many public sector entities like public sector banks, electricity department also took benefit of the Lok Adalats to settle its recovery-related matters.