Initiatives of Legal Services Authorities improving access to justice
Expeditious disposal of cases by Fast Track Spl Courts
Mohinder Verma
JAMMU Aug 3: The initiatives of Legal Services Authorities are significantly improving access to justice in Union Territory of Jammu & Kashmir and Union Territory of Ladakh as over 13.67 lakh pending cases have been disposed of in the Lok Adalats conducted since 2021.
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Moreover, Fast Track Special Courts are ensuring expeditious disposal of cases particularly those registered under Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
The Lok Adalats are organized by Legal Services Authorities at such intervals as they deem fit in order to reduce the pendency of cases in the courts and also to settle the disputes at pre-litigation stage. As the Lok Adalats are not permanent establishments and handle pending court cases as referred by the respective courts, all unsettled cases are reverted back to the respective courts and hence don’t remain pending with the Lok Adalats.
Every year National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) issues calendar for organizing National Lok Adalats and the State Legal Services Authorities have been issued guidelines by NALSA to organize State Lok Adalats as per the local conditions and needs so that pendency of cases could be reduced.
The initiatives of NALSA, Jammu and Kashmir Legal Services Authority and Ladakh Legal Services Authorities have yielded significant results in both the Union Territories since 2021 as over 13.67 lakh cases have been disposed of up to June 2024 thereby improving access to justice for the people.
As per the official data available with EXCELSIOR, during the National Lok Adalats held in the year 2021 in J&K a total of 166544 cases were disposed of and this number increased to 390496 during 2022. Further, a total of 404665 cases were disposed of during the National Lok Adalats held in the year 2023 and during the current year 265955 cases have been disposed of up to June.
Likewise, in Ladakh Union Territory, 1463 cases were disposed of by the National Lok Adalats held in 2021, 1444 in 2022, 1781 in 2023 and 737 in 2024 up to June. With this, a total of 12.33 lakh cases have been disposed of by the National Local Adalats in both the Union Territories.
Similarly, over 1.34 lakh cases (both pre-litigative and pending) have been disposed of by State Lok Adalats since 2021 up to June 2024 in Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh Union Territories.
During 2021-22, 3271 cases were settled by State Lok Adalats in J&K and this number increased to 76683 during 2022-23. Similarly, 28170 cases were disposed of by State Lok Adalats during 2023-24 and during 2024-25, 25869 cases were settled up to June 2024. In Ladakh Union Territory, the State Lok Adalats settled 32 cases during 2021-22 and 240 during 2022-23.
Even Fast Track Special Courts including exclusive POCSO Courts are ensuring expeditious disposal of cases pertaining to the rape and protection of children from sexual offences. There are four Fast Track Special Courts including exclusive POCSO.
Pursuant to the Criminal Law Amendment Act, 2018, the Central Government has been implementing Centrally Sponsored Scheme for setting up of Fast Track Special Courts. The scheme was initially implemented for one year, which was extended up to March 2023 and now it has been extended till March 31, 2026.
As per the official data, a total of 192 cases including 101 POCSO have been disposed of by these four courts since their establishment in Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir. The establishment of Fast Track Special Courts demonstrates the unwavering commitment of the Government towards women security, combating sexual and gender-based violence, reducing the backlog of pending cases related to rape and POCSO Act and providing enhanced access to justice for survivors of sexual crimes, the legal experts said.
It is pertinent to mention here there is a provision for establishment of Vulnerable Witness Deposition Centres within these Fast Track Special Courts to facilitate the victims and to provide crucial support for a compassionate legal system.
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