New Delhi: As many as 2,232 cases have been settled from June to September 2020 through e-Lok Adalats organised in Odisha by Legal Services Authorities to facilitate access to justice during Covid-19 pandemic.
According to the Minister of Law and Justice, as many as 20,780 cases were taken up by e-Adalats in the state as on September 12 of which 2,232 were disposed of resulting in settlement of Rs 48.97 crore.
The ministry further stated that around 2,061 pending cases were disposed of while 171 cases were disposed at the pre-litigation stage.
Significantly, the legal services authorities had adapted to the new normal and moved Lok Adalat to virtual platform in the period of turbulence caused by the pandemic.
“From June 2020 to October 2020, 27 e-Lok Adalats were organised in 15 states wherein 4.83 lakh cases were taken up and 2.51 lakh cases disposed of resulting in settlement of Rs 1,409 crore. During November, e-Lok Adalats have been organised in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Telangana so far wherein 16,651 cases were taken up and 12,686 disposed of resulting in settlement of Rs 107.4 crore,” the ministry said.
In order to facilitate access to justice amidst the constraints placed by Covid-19 and various public health guidelines, the Legal Services Authorities have ingeniously integrated technology into its conventional methods of justice delivery.
“Online Lok Adalat, popularly known as e-Lok Adalat, is one such innovation of Legal Services Institutions where technology has been used to its maximum advantage and has become a platform to deliver justice at the doorstep of people. E-Lok Adalats are also cost effective as it eliminates the need for organisational expenses,” the ministry said.
It is to be mentioned here that Lok Adalats (state as well as national) are an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) mode wherein pre-litigation and pending cases in the courts are resolved on the basis of amicable settlement without any expense on the part of litigants. It is free of cost and expeditious method of bringing litigating parties on the same side and saving them from the rigours of trial under adversarial system of adjudication which is generally perceived to be time consuming, complex and costly.