Chief Minister Raman Singh on Saturday stated that State Government was committed of providing speedy justice and protecting basic rights of the common people.
“The State is making all out efforts to help people get rid of Naxal violence and fear. The authorities are keen on providing speedy justice in the Bastar region and the role of legal Services’ Authority’s is crucial in ensuring it,’’ Singh remarked while addressing a two-day regional conference of the Eastern Region States legal Services’ Authorities-Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, West Bengal, Andaman Nicobar and Uttarakhand. The conference was held at the Chhattisgarh High Court, Bilaspur.
Chief Minister added that citizens living in the hinterland did not know the ways of getting justice. “legal Services’ Authority is one of the forum which gives confidence to the ignorant citizens’’, Singh added.
Singh said that efforts are being made to upgrade the skills of the jail inmates so that they lead a decent life after being released from prisons. The prisoners wait for justice for several years. The authorities are making efforts to provide justice through Video-Conferencing facility in jails.
All the District Courts have been linked to Video-Conferencing facility. Steps are being taken to ensure speedy justice to the citizens residing in far-flung Bastar region.
Singh observed that 32 per cent population are Scheduled Tribes and 12 per cent Scheduled Castes. Forty-four per cent citizens live under Below Poverty line (BPl).
“There is a general perception that justice goes in favour of rich and powerful. legal Services’ Authority caters to provide justice to the poor and the needy. The State is slowly moving towards ensuring speedy justice to the common man. The primary objective is to ensure justice to widows, orphaned children and people whose houses have been gutted,’’ Singh said.
Supreme Court Judge and Working Chairperson of National legal Services Authority Justice Anil R. Dave said that the workshop will attain greater heights in the field of legal Authority.
“Novel experiments are being followed in various States in the field of legal services. New ideas will emerge in the course of this workshop. There are thousands of citizens who cannot enter the portals of courts. Many of the litigants are unable to shoulder the financial burden of the court cases. Most of the innocent citizens do not their rights also,’’ Dave said.