Only a few months after their marriages, they were estranged couples and entered into prolonged legal battles to get a stamp of approval to their legal separation. However, with proper counselling at least five estranged couples were reunited at a lok Adalat held here in the Odisha High Court here on Saturday.
The 429th State-level lok Adalat was inaugurated by senior High Court Judge Pradeep K. Mohanty. Apart from reuniting the estranged couples, Family Court Judge Kishore Chandra Mohapatra also disposed of as many as 52 other marital discord cases. The lok Adalat, presided over by three other High Court Judges Subash Chandra Parija, Akshay Kumar Rath and Biswajit Mohanty, also settled as many as 177 motor vehicle (MV) claim cases.
Sources said a total of 324 MV accident claim cases had been listed in which four insurance companies represented through their lawyers. The lok Adalat by settling 177 cases awarded a combined compensation of about `3.50 crore to the claimants, the sources added.