Do not pressure litigants, says H L Dattu

Hyderabad: Chief Justice of India H.L. Dattu on Saturday advised presiding officers of Lok Adalats not to put any pressure on the parties to come to a settlement and leave it to them to settle the dispute amicably.

Saying that he often hears from various quarters that a party was pressurised to sign certain documents in Lok Adalats, the CJI asked the presiding officers to be cautious while handling matters.

He was inaugurating the Second National Lok Adalat here on the premises of the Hyderabad HC.

The CJI was of the opinion that pressure should not be put on the parties and their dispute requires to be settled amicably between the parties and they should go back with a smile by thanking the presiding officer.

Recalling that more than 10 lakh cases were settled through Lok Adalats last year throughout the country, Justice Dattu said  “This year also I am hoping that we will cross last year’s target, but crossing the target requires some more effort this time.”

Maintaining that he had his roots in Andhra Pradesh, Justice Dattu said, “My parents belong to Andhra Pradesh and our family settled in Karnataka probably three decades ago. I am happy and proud to be associated with Andhra Pradesh as well as Hyderabad.”

Stressing the need for continuing Lok Adalats on a regular basis rather than once in a year, Justice Dattu said, “Whenever, I come across cases pertaining to land acquisition or accident claims in my day-to-day hearing as a judge, I tell the parties to go for an amicable settlement. In most of the cases, parties agree to resolve the disputes by consent.”

CJ Kalyan Jyoti Sengupta of the Hyderabad HC said 80,000 cases from AP and 91,000 cases from TS were placed before Lok Adalats.

Justice L. Narasimha Reddy, Executive Chairman of AP Legal Services Authority, Justice K.C. Bhanu, Executive Chairman of the Telangana Legal Services Authority, and Justice G. Chandraiah, Chairman of the Legal Services Committee also spoke at the function.

Elsewhere, a section of advocates displayed placards requesting the CJI to set up a separate High Court for Andhra Pradesh.