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TMI Blog2014 (10) TMI 528X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... various provisions of settlement of disputes through Lok Adalat. It is an Act to constitute legal services authorities to provide free and competent legal services to the weaker sections of the society to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of economic or other disabilities, and to organize Lok Adalats to secure that the operation of the legal system promotes justice on a basis of equal opportunity. In fact, the concept of Lok Adalat is an innovative Indian contribution to the world jurisprudence. It is a new form of the justice dispensation system and has largely succeeded in providing a supplementary forum to the victims for settlement of their disputes. This system is based on Gandhian principles. Court could have passed the order itself, instead of relegating the matter to the Lok Adalat. We have ourselves highlighted the importance and significance of the Institution of Lok Adalat. We would be failing in our duty if we do not mention that, of late, there is some criticism as well which, inter alia, relates to the manner in which cases are posted before the Lok Adalats. We have to devise the methods to ensure that faith in ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... le respondent. Essentially the lis was between respondent Nos. 1 and 2. Respondent No.1 had filed a complaint under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 (hereinafter referred to as the 'Act') against respondent No.2. Matter reached before the Additional Sessions Judge in the form of criminal appeal. During the pendency of the said appeal, the matter was settled between the parties. On their application, the matter was referred to Mega Lok Adalat. However, the concerned Presiding Officer in the Lok Adalat did not give his imprimatur to the said settlement in the absence of deposit made as per the direction given in the judgment of this Court in Damodar S. Prabhu v. Sayed Babalal H., (2010) 5 SCC 663. Against the order of Additional Sessions Judge, a writ petition was filed by respondent No.2 but the same is also dismissed by the High Court, accepting the view taken by the Additional Sessions Judge. 3) From the aforesaid, it would be clear that the matter in issue was between respondent Nos. 1 and 2. The appellant comes in picture only because the parties had approached the Mega Lok Adalat organised by the appellant. The reason for filing the present appeal ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... same cordial relation in future as well. On that basis it was stated in the application that respondent No.1 herein did not want to proceed against respondent No.2 and wanted the appeal to be disposed of on the basis of compromise by filing a compromise deed in the appeal. This application was filed under Section 147 of the Act which permits compounding of such offences. We would like to point out at this stage that on what terms the parties had settled the matter is not on record as compromise deed has not been filed. 8) When this application came up for hearing on July 30, 2011 before the learned appellate Court, counsel for both the parties requested that the matter be forwarded to the Mega Lok Adalat which was being organized on the same date. On this application, following order was passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge: 30.07.2011 xx xx xx An application under section 147 Negotiation (sic) Instrument Act filed on behalf of both sides for compromise and request is made to direct the matter be taken up before the Lok Adalat organized today's date. In view of the facts mentioned in the application, for abrogation of the compromise application, the m ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... ompounding may be allowed by the court without imposing any costs on the accused. (b) If the accused does not make an application for compounding as aforesaid, then if an application for compounding is made before the Magistrate at the subsequent stage, compounding can be allowed subject to the condition that the accused will be required to pay 10% of the cheque amount to be deposited as a condition for compounding with the Legal Services Authority, or such authority as the Court deems fit. (c) Similarly, if the application for compounding is made before the Sessions Court or a High Court in revision or appeal, such compounding may be allowed on the condition that the accused pays 15% of the cheque amount by way of costs. (d) Finally, if the application for compounding is made before the Supreme Court, the figure would increase to 20% of the cheque amount. 12) The question of consideration in the aforesaid backdrop is as to whether directions/guidelines given by this Court in the aforesaid judgment are inapplicable in cases which are resolved/settled in Lok Adalats. 13) What was argued before us by the learned counsel for the appellant was that these guidelines cont ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... dure, 1973, such an award was executable as a decree of the civil Court under the Code of Civil Procedure, 1908. The submission, therefore, was that once award of the Lok Adalat is given the effect of the decree and attaches this kind of sanctity behind it, it should be carved out as an exception to 'The Guidelines' framed by this Court in Damodar S. Prabhu's case (supra). 15) We have considered the aforesaid submission of the learned counsel with utmost intensity of thought. It appears to be of substance in the first blush when this submission is to be considered in the context of the purpose and objective with which Lok Adalats have been constituted under Section 19 of the 1987 Act. No doubt, the manifest objective is to have speedy resolution of the disputes through these Lok Adalats, with added advantage of cutting the cost of litigation and avoiding further appeals. The advent of the 1987 Act gave a statutory status to Lok Adalats, pursuant to the constitutional mandate in Article 39-A of the Constitution of India, contains various provisions of settlement of disputes through Lok Adalat. It is an Act to constitute legal services authorities to provide free and c ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... he matter between themselves before hand and filed the application in this behalf before the learned Additional Sessions Judge on July 30, 2011 with a request which the matter be taken up before the Lok Adalat that was being organized on the same date. It is clear from the order passed by the learned Additional Sessions Judge on July 30, 2011, which is already extracted above. 18) In the first instance, we do not understand as to why the matter was sent to Lok Adalat when the parties had settled the matter between themselves and application to this effect was filed in the Court. In such a situation, the Court could have passed the order itself, instead of relegating the matter to the Lok Adalat. We have ourselves highlighted the importance and significance of the Institution of Lok Adalat. We would be failing in our duty if we do not mention that, of late, there is some criticism as well which, inter alia, relates to the manner in which cases are posted before the Lok Adalats. We have to devise the methods to ensure that faith in the system is maintained as in the holistic terms access to justice is achieved through this system. We, therefore, deprecate this tendency of referrin ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... proceedings and resort to settlement process only at a stage when the accused persons were driven to wall. It is for this reason that most of the complaints filed result in compromise or settlement before the final judgment on the one side and even in those cases where judgment is pronounced and conviction is recorded, such cases are settled at appellate stage. This was so noted in para 13 of the judgment, which reads as under: 13. It is quite obvious that with respect to the offence of dishonour of cheques, it is the compensatory aspect of the remedy which should be given priority over the punitive aspect. There is also some support for the apprehensions raised by the learned Attorney General that a majority of cheque bounce cases are indeed being compromised or settled by way of compounding, albeit during the later stages of litigation thereby contributing to undue delay in justice-delivery. The problem herein is with the tendency of litigants to belatedly choose compounding as a means to resolve their dispute. Further more, the writen submissions filed on behalf of the learned Attorney General have stressed on the fact that unlike Section 320 of the CrPC, Section 147 of the ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... be seen as an act of judicial lawmaking and therefore an intrusion into the legislative domain. It must be kept in mind that Section 147 of the Act does not carry any guidance on how to proceed with the compounding of offences under the Act. We have already explained that the scheme contemplated under Section 320 of the CrPC cannot be followed in the strict sense. In view of the legislative vacuum, we see no hurdle to the endorsement of some suggestions which have been designed to discourage litigants from unduly delaying the composition of the offence in cases involving Section 138 of the Act. The graded scheme for imposing costs is a means to encourage compounding at an early stage of litigation. In the status quo, valuable time of the Court is spent on the trial of these cases and the parties are not liable to pay any Court fee since the proceedings are governed by the Code of Criminal Procedure, even though the impact of the offence is largely confined to the private parties. Even though the imposition of costs by the competent court is a matter of discretion, the scale of costs has been suggested in the interest of uniformity. The competent Court can of course reduce the cost ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X ..... that it may not be necessarily so and a proper balance can be struck taking care of both the situations. 26) Having regard thereto, we are of the opinion that even when a case is decided in Lok Adalat, the requirement of following the guidelines contained in Damodar S. Prabhu (supra) should normally not be dispensed with. However, if there is a special/specific reason to deviate therefrom, the Court is not remediless as Damodar S. Prabhu (supra) itself has given discretion to the concerned Court to reduce the costs with regard to specific facts and circumstances of the case, while recording reasons in writing about such variance. Therefore, in those matters where the case has to be decided/settled in the Lok Adalat, if the Court finds that it is a result of positive attitude of the parties, in such appropriate cases, the Court can always reduce the costs by imposing minimal costs or even waive the same. For that, it would be for the parties, particularly the accused person, to make out a plausible case for the waiver/reduction of costs and to convince the concerned Court about the same. This course of action, according to us, would strike a balance between the two competing but ..... X X X X Extracts X X X X X X X X Extracts X X X X
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