Executive Chairman of Chhattisgarh State Legal Services Authority (CGSLSA) Justice Goutam Bhaduri said that Mohalla Lok Adalat would be helpful to provide relief to common people and cases would be resolved on the spot.

He was addressing the inaugural programme of the country’s first Mohalla Lok Adalat from the District Court, Bilaspur in Chhattisgarh recently.

The Executive Chairman flagged off Mobile Lok Adalat. Justice Bhaduri emphasised that the goal of the CGSLSA is to provide legal aid and access to justice to the last person standing in the line, keeping this concept in mind, realising the basic problems of the people for a long time, to solve the problems like health, insurance, education, traffic, cleanliness, road, electricity, drinking water etc. The concept of Mohalla Lok Adalat has been implemented in all the divisional headquarters of the State. Earlier the common people had no alternatives for resolution of such kinds of disputes. Consequently common people had no other option but to wait in long queues at different government offices, which sometimes used to result in large scale protests and demonstrations, he said.

NALSA also aims to provide cheap and accessible justice to the people by reaching their doorstep, he added. He also highlighted that there is no provision for appeal from the order of Permanent Lok Adalat and if its power is seen then it should be understood that its order is as powerful as the order of the High Court. Justice Bhaduri appealed to everyone to publicise and spread awareness about Mohallla Lok Adalat to maximum number of people.

Mohalla Lok Adalat has started functioning in Raipur apart from Bilaspur. A large number of judges and officers including District Judge and Chairperson of District Legal Services Authority Ashok Sahu, Principal Judge Family Court Ramashankar Prasad, Member Secretary of the CGSLSA Anand Prakash Wariyal were present on the occasion. In Bilaspur, the Lok Adalat was held at Mini Basti, Jarhabhatha, where the Chairman of the Permanent Lok Adalat Pankaj Jain, along with the members, disposed of 96 applications on the spot out of 121 applications, which were mainly related to cleanliness, roads, electricity, water etc. The construction of an accessible toilet was also ordered on the application of the people of the locality.