Tamil Nadu - Madurai   

Lok Adalats to be headed by serving judges

Staff Reporter

Chief Justice accepts idea mooted by Madurai Bench of Madras High Court

MADURAI: In a bid to give an impetus to out of court settlements, the Madras High Court has decided to allow serving judges, instead of retired judges, to head Lok Adalats.

Conveying the decision here on Thursday, Justice P.D. Dinakaran said, the Chief Justice, Ajit Prakash Shah, has accepted the idea mooted by the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court. The new arrangement will be effected first in the Bench and the serving judges would preside over lok adalats every week.

The change is being brought into the system because the transport corporations, insurance companies and other such institutions, which are parties to the lok adalat proceedings, do not treat the retired judges seriously, Mr. Justice Dinakaran added.

He was delivering a special address at the felicitation function, organized jointly by all bar associations, to honour Justice P. Jyothimani and Justice Makena Eswara Narasimha Patrudu, who assumed office recently.

Pointing out that the backlog of cases in the court was raising at alarming proportions, Justice Dinakaran urged the lawyers to try their best to settle the matters amicably through mediation and conciliation.

Public welfare schemes

He said that public welfare schemes such as laying roads, constructing water tanks and many more were hampered due to thousands of interim orders passed by the courts and blamed the system for the poor state of affairs. "It is easy for a senior counsel to appear in a case and obtain favourable orders. But, We have to accept the fact that we are responsible in the growth and development of our country and I appeal to the members of the bar to think over this seriously."

Predicting that a disaster is inevitable in the legal system and the judiciary, the Judge stressed on the need to draw a disaster prevention plan as well as a disaster recovery plan. With reference to the long duration taken to dispose of cases, he said, "the litigant public is frustrated."

The Judge praised the professional acumen displayed by the lawyers practicing in the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court within a short span of over 15 months since the inauguration of the Bench and said: "You are growing faster and better than the principal seat in Chennai." In their acceptance speech to the felicitations, the judges who recently assumed office assured their fullest cooperation to the bar and insisted on the junior lawyers to work hard. Judges, S.R. Singharavelu, A.C. Arumuga Perumal Adityan and S. Tamilvanan participated.

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