Dispute had 40 parties of one family represented by a total of 10 lawyers

Mysore/Mysuru: The National Lok Adalat, the first one this year, that was held yesterday, broke a record of sorts by resolving a 53-year-old property dispute. In all, the Adalat settled 55,133 cases through mutual settlement and arbitration.

Speaking to reporters at the new Court complex in Malalavadi, Principal District and Sessions Judge M.L. Raghunath said that the case was filed in 1969 related to sharing a prime property located on Sayyaji Rao Road in the heart of the city. It had 40 parties and was represented by a total of 10 lawyers.

As the family members were not agreeing for a compromise, the case dragged on for 53 years. Now the case was being fought by the third generation of the family.

One party in the case, who was undergoing treatment in a hospital, participated in the proceedings through video-conferencing wearing an oxygen mask, and even spoke to National Legal Services Authority Chairperson Justice U.T. Lalit.

Other family members too participated in the proceedings through video-conferencing from Chennai, Mumbai and even from abroad. GPAs and affidavits were procured from the parties who could not be physically present during the Lok Adalat and the case was settled.

Member-Secretary of Mysuru District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) Devaraj Bhute described the case as a special one and the Lok Adalat was successful in settling the case. During the hearing, the warring family was convinced by the judges to settle the case in the interest of family cordiality and peace.

Interestingly, Justice U.T. Lalit too was part of the hearing and he complimented the family for agreeing for a compromise after 53 years. He also commended the efforts of Mysuru DLSA  in resolving the case.

The Lok Adalat was organised by the DLSA under directions from Karnataka State Legal Services Authority and was held at all City and Taluk Courts across the district.

Lok Adalat is one of the alternative dispute redressal mechanisms and is a Forum where disputes/ cases pending in a Court of Law or at a pre-litigation stage, are settled in an out of the Court resolution mechanism. In Mysuru, the Lok Adalat was held in a total of 65 Court halls, including 44 in the city alone (District Law Courts and Court at Malalavadi in Jayanagar).

There were a total of 1,99,778 cases that were pending before different Courts in Mysuru and 1,01,107 of them were identified for mutual settlement. Steps were taken to resolve 64,047 of them and 55,133 cases including 54,893 pending cases and 240 pre-litigation cases were resolved. A total compensation of Rs. 62,68,583 was awarded in the cases that were settled.

32 estranged couples united

The Lok Adalat held yesterday saw the reunion of 32 estranged couples who were fighting divorce cases in different Courts. Out of the 110 family dispute cases pending before different taluk Courts in Mysuru district and the Court in Mysuru city, 32 couples agreed to resolve their domestic differences and pledged to lead a harmonious life.

One among the cases was pending for the last 14 years. In another case, a husband, who was jailed for six months for not paying alimony to his estranged wife, was reunited with his wife and both agreed to lead a cordial life. Divorce had been granted to the couple but both of them reached a compromise.

Principal District and Sessions Judge M.L. Raghunath appealed to estranged couples fighting divorce cases to participate in Lok Adalat proceedings and resolve their differences to lead                                a peaceful family life.