हिंदी
Amritsar 26 January 2024
Under the aegis of National Legal Services Authority, New Delhi and guidance of Punjab State Legal Services Authority, Today i.e. 26.01.2024 on the occasion of Republic Day Celebration; Hon’ble District & Sessions Judge, Amritsar Smt. Harpreet Kaur Randhawa has released the posters/banners of National Lok Adalat for its wide publicity for the welfare of the general masses. The message was spread and awareness was created that the National Lok Adalats are organized by Legal Services Authorities, are an Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) mode wherein pre-litigative and pending cases in the courts would be disposed on the basis of amicable settlement without any expense on the part of litigants. It is free of cost and expeditious method to bring litigating parties to a settlement of their disputes and saving them from prolong litigation under adversarial system of adjudication which is generally perceived to be time consuming, complex and costly. Lok Adalats are also instrumental in reducing the burden on arrears of the court disposal of long pending litigation between the parties.
Also on the occasion of Celebration of Republic Day Celebration “Pan-India Campaign-Restoring the YOUTH” under the aegis of NALSA has been launched. The moto of the campaign is to identify the juveniles in prisons and rendering legal assistance to them.
Sh. Rachhpal Singh, Judge conducted the orientation program on the campaign for jail visiting lawyers and Para Legal Volunteers deputed at the Prison Legal Aid Clinic.
Sh. Rachhpal Singh, Chief Judicial Magistrate-cum-Secretary, DLSA, Amritsar has visited the Central Jail, Amritsar alongwith the team of Legal Aid Defense Counsel namely Sh. Randhir Sharma, Sh. Sandeep Singh Randhawa, Sh. Nirmalpreet Singh Hira, Sh. Abhijit Singh Sandhu, Sh. Sunil Kumar, Sh. Harpreet Singh Joshan, Sh. Ishwinder Singh Mehta advocates. Sh. Sanjay Heer, Junior Assistant and Sh. Manjit Singh Clerk also accompanied them during the visit.
Sh. Rachhpal Singh, Judge interacted with each prisoner and discussed in details about the campaign and it was informed to the prisoners that as per communication received from National Legal Services Authority, New Delhi, Pan India Campaign for identifying juveniles in prisons and rendering legal assistance, 2024 has been launched across the country. This campaign is aimed at identifying persons currently in prisons who were potentially minor on the date of occurrence of offence and to assist them in filling the necessary applications for claim of juvenility alongwith the supporting documents.
Teams are visiting each barrack of the jail and interacting with each prisoner (under trial or convict), who claim to be minor on the date of occurrence of the offence and assisting them in filling the application before the appropriate court.
The prisoners were also made aware about the availability of free legal aid for filling the application for claim of juvenility and were apprised that any inmate in the jail whether convict or under trial whois entitled for this benefit can avail free legal aid under Legal Services Authority Act, 1987.
