The Governmental machinery has been activated for disposal of more numbers of cases in the ensuing national lok Adalat scheduled to be held on Sunday. Chief Secretary Jugal Kishore Mohapatra held a videoconferencing with the Public Prosecutors (PPs) and Assistant Public Prosecutors (APPs) at the State secretariat in this regard.
The PPs and APPs engaged in different district and sub-divisional courts had a direct interaction with the Chief Secretary over the videoconferencing. Additional Chief Secretary, Home UN Behera; ACS, Revenue & Disaster Management Dr Taradatt; Principal Secretary, law Satrughna Pujhari; Principal Secretary, Forest & Environment Raj Kumar Sharma and PCCF PN Padhi joined the Chief Secretary in the conference and clarified the queris raised by the PPs. The PPs were asked to expedite the long-pending compoundable forest cases against tribals, the forest encroachment cases against which titles have been issued under the FRA (The Forest Right’s Act) Act and the years-old compoundable excise cases for disposal in the lok Adalat.
This national-level lok Adalat will be held in different courts throughout the State. The PPs were advised to enlist for disposal all the petty cases under the Motor Vehicle Act and Police Act, the cases under the Bihar Odisha Act instituted prior to the amendment of 1999 where the quantity of seized liquor less than 10 liters. Tadi and Mahua cases up to two quintals in scheduled area, the cases under the Standard Weights and Measures Act, petty cases under the Minimum Wages Act and the Odisha Shops & Commercial Establishments Act where the prosecution is launched for non-maintenance of registers and records, cases under the Fire Works and loud Speaker Act, cases under the Prohibition of Smoking Act, cases under the Cattle Tress Pass Act, cases under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animal Act and long-pending mutation cases.
Besides, all petty IPC cases covered under Sections 320(1) and 320(2) and cases under Sections 160, 277, 278, 279, 282, 284, 285, 286, 287, 288, 289,290, 336, 337, 426, 309 and 510 will also be enlisted for disposal in the lok Adalat.
As per preliminary information available from the videoconferencing, more than 50,000 cases have been identified in different district and sub-divisional judicial as well as revenue courts for disposal. Necessary instructions have been issued by respective departments to their field-level offices to enlist such cases and expediting the process of their disposal. The Home Department and the Director Public Prosecutors have also issued necessary guidelines in the matter. ACS, Home Behera said this step has been initiated to reduce the load of cases on the courts so that the PPs can devote more time to other cases for administration of justice.