Chandrapur to hold National Lok Adalat on September 12

A National Lok Adalat will be held in Chandrapur city and across the district on Saturday, September 12. The District Legal Services Authority has organised the drive, under which pending disputes will be settled through mutual compromise. The exercise is being conducted under the guidance of Abhay K. Lahoti, Principal District and Sessions Judge and Chairman of the District Legal Services Authority. At a press conference held on September 11, lawyers and litigants were urged to take part.

The Lok Adalat will not be confined to Chandrapur city alone; it will be held on the same day at all taluka courts in the district. The nationwide drive is being carried out locally as per directions from the National Legal Services Authority, Supreme Court, New Delhi, and the Maharashtra State Legal Services Authority, High Court, Mumbai. Its main objective is to free litigants from long-drawn court cases.

The biggest feature of the Lok Adalat is that it saves time, money and effort, and disputes are settled permanently. Pending cases are resolved quickly at this forum through mutual compromise and with the consent of both parties. An order passed at a Lok Adalat is legally as valid as a decree of a civil court and can be enforced in the same way. No additional court fee has to be paid by litigants for this process. Since disputes are settled with the consent of both sides, there is no loser, and both parties get satisfaction, reducing the chances of fresh disputes in future.

Several kinds of cases will be taken up for settlement at this Lok Adalat. These include pending civil suits, compoundable criminal cases, cheque bounce cases under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, bank loan recovery cases, motor vehicle accident compensation claims, land acquisition applications, labour law cases, disputes between landlords and tenants, all family disputes except divorce, and compoundable cases under the Electricity Act. In addition, pre-litigation matters not yet filed in court, revenue claims, and disputes over pending water and electricity bills will also be resolved amicably at this forum.

Sudhir S. Ingle, Secretary of the District Legal Services Authority, has appealed to citizens that litigants who wish to settle their cases amicably at this Lok Adalat should immediately contact the concerned court or the District Legal Services Authority office in Chandrapur. For more information and assistance, the administration has provided the telephone number 07172-271679 and the office mobile number 8591903934. The District Legal Services Authority has appealed to litigants to come forward and find a permanent resolution to their court disputes.