Judiciary being one of the essential organs of the state, administration of justice is its primary task. India has a unified judicial system with a pyramidal hierarchical structure of Courts. Supreme Court stands like a sentinel on the qui vive at the apex. High Courts occupy the second position, which in turn are followed by a vast network of Subordinate Courts. Courts in India have emerged as a vital institution in interpreting the Constitution of India and thereby, assuring justice to the common man. The principle of equal and social justice, which is duly enshrined in the Constitution of India and in particular, in the Directive Principles of State Policy, aims at removing social and economic anomalies from our social setup. The credit for upholding this principle as well as rights of common man must be given to the judiciary.
However, in recent times, the community world over has become more and more conscious about their rights. They frequently resort to redressal through courts of law by way of litigation, when their rights are infringed. Due to the complexities of modern lifestyle, disputants want a decision as quick as possible. This has resulted in ‘litigation explosion’ across various courts in the country. Particularly, civil litigation in India is well-known for pending cases flooded by adjournments, revision, appeals, cross-appeals, etc. Due to this, litigants have to wait for a long time to seek justice from the courts. Thus, traditional courts in India have become infamous for their delays and rigid procedural rules, and expensiveness of their litigation processes.
The problem of delays and expensive litigation has engaged the attention and consideration of several legal luminaries and those connected with the management of the judicial system of the country. This paved the way for the formation of various committees. The Law Commission of India also in its various reports2 has considered this problem in all its facets and suggested some remedial measures.3 Accordingly, a few procedural amendments were carried out,4 a piece of substantial law emerged5 and other improvements in the working of the system have also been introduced. Many tribunals and forums have been created to reduce the workload in courts. Besides, many mechanisms for amicable settlement of disputes such as negotiation, conciliation, mediation and arbitration, institutions like Ombudsman, Nyaya Panchayat and Lok Adalat have been set up to provide rapid, effective and cheap remedies that can be made available to the people along with the traditional legal system, and to ensure guarantee of equal access to justice. More promising among all is the Lok Adalat.
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