Litigants vigilant now, lawyers should change, ensure justice: Chief Justice

Our Correspondent

Hoshiarpur, March 17

Litigants have now become vigilant, so the lawyers have to change too. They have the key role in justice dispensation system, and they should always remember the onerous duty towards humanity.

They should guide the litigants as Lord Krishna guided Arjuna. The lawyers should encourage litigants to look for alternative modes of justice such as mediation because in most of the civil cases, litigants are confused.

This was stated by Chief Justice of High Court of Punjab and Haryana Ravi Shankar Jha here today. He was in Hoshiarpur to inaugurate the new multistorey District and Sessions Court Complex in the presence of Justice Arun Palli, the Administrative Judge, Hoshiarpur Division.

The Chief Justice said lawyers have a important role in society. The freedom struggle of the country was led by lawyers and they were the people of great morality. With the greater infrastructure comes the greater responsibility. The lawyers should raise the standard of morality and ethics to make this judicial complex made with bricks and mortar, a real temple of justice. He said, “I have been a lawyer myself and I feel that key to early decision and resolution is with the lawyers. If an advocate gives a judge a well-prepared case, the judge will have to decide it immediately.”

On the piling up of cases in the courts, he said at some places the number of new cases coming to the courts was fewer than those disposed of, but at most places it was not so. There was an increase of 1,000 to 2,000 pending cases every year. At present in Hoshiarpur, 40,000 cases are pending.

He exhorted the judicial officers to be more energetic and urged all, including the judicial officers, lawyers and staff, to come completely out of the Covid slumber.

The inauguration ceremony which was held in the New District and Sessions Court Complex was also attended by District and Sessions Judge Sh Dilbagh Singh Johal along with other judicial officers, Deputy Commissioner Komal Mittal, SSP Sartaj Singh Chahal, Bar President RP Dhir and other dignitaries of Hoshiarpur.

District and Sessions Judge, Hoshiarpur, Dilbagh Singh Johal informed that the New District and Sessions Court Complex had been constructed in a total area of 14 acres and 10 marlas for which the construction work had commenced in 2018. The approved cost of construction was Rs 60.28 crore, the total covered area of the complex is 389,721 sq feet. The complex is having 17 court rooms and one children court room.