Srinagar :In a significant stride towards delivering timely and amicable justice, the District Judiciary Srinagar, in collaboration with the District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) Srinagar, successfully organized the 2nd National Lok Adalat of the year 2026 at the District Court Complex Mominabad, Srinagar, and at the Court of the Additional Special Mobile Magistrate/JMIC Panthachowk.
The Lok Adalat was held under the guidance of Justice Sanjeev Kumar, Judge, High Court of J&K and Ladakh and Executive Chairman, J&K Legal Services Authority and overall supervision of ShaziaTabasum, Member Secretary, J&K Legal Services Authority and Haq Nawaz Zargar, Principal District & Sessions Judge (Chairman, DLSA), Srinagar, along with Secretary, DLSA Srinagar.
The Lok Adalat was inaugurated by Justice Sanjeev Kumar, Judge, High Court of J&K and Ladakh (Executive Chairman, J&K Legal Services Authority).
The inauguration ceremony was held in presence of ShaziaTabasum, Member Secretary, J&K Legal Services Authority; Haq Nawaz Zargar, Principal District & Sessions Judge (Chairman, DLSA) Srinagar, and judicial officers, members of the bar, Court & DLSA staff members of District Court Complex Srinagar.
A ceremonial Guard of Honour was presented by the Jammu and Kashmir Police, marking a dignified and respectful beginning to the proceedings. Following the guard of honour, a sapling was planted by the Chief Guest within the court premises, as a gesture towards environmental protection and promotion of a greener and cleaner environment.
The dignitaries visited and observed the functioning of various benches at the District Court Srinagar, offering encouragement to litigants and reinforcing the ethos of participatory justice.
Speaking on the occasion, Justice Sanjeev Kumar emphasized the transformative role of Lok Adalats in the justice delivery system, stated “Lok Adalat is not just a mechanism for resolving disputes, it is a platform that creates a win-win situation for all parties involved. It saves time, reduces litigation costs, and fosters goodwill. I encourage the public to actively participate in this initiative for peaceful, timely, and amicable settlements. Justice through Lok Adalats strengthens the very foundation of participatory and compassionate justice.” He laid emphasis on disposal of substantial Civil, Criminal and Matrimonial cases, through the medium of Lok Adalat
The Lok Adalat received an enthusiastic response from litigants, a testament to the growing public trust in alternative dispute resolution mechanisms. A wide range of cases, including civil matters, matrimonial disputes, criminal compoundable offences, bank recoveries, and pre-litigation issues were taken up, with a significant number being resolved on the spot.
To facilitate the amicable settlement of cases,12 benches were constituted, in whole District wherein the Bench where MACT claims were settled was presided over by Adnan Sayeed, Special Judge Anti Corruption CBI Cases Srinagar and Fayaz Ahmad Qureshi, Presiding Officer, MACT, Court Srinagar in which 58 cases were taken out of which 39 cases were amicably settled and Rs 4,38,15,000 was awarded as settlement amount and cheques amounting Rs 2,20,000,00 were on spot distributed among claimants by Justice Sanjeev Kumar, Judge High Court of J&K and Ladakh (Executive Chairman, J&K Legal Services Authority), in presence of Haq Nawaz Zargar, Principal District & Sessions Judge Srinagar, ShaziaTabasum, Member Secretary, J&K Legal Services Authority, and other Ld. Judicial Officers of District Court Srinagar.
By the concerted efforts of all presiding officers of all the courts, cooperation rendered by the learned advocates and officers of various government departments, insurance companies and banking institutions, a total 72,337 cases were taken up by 12 benches in the district out of which 71844 cases were settled in the said Lok-Adalat.
An amount of Rs 11,38,58,851 was awarded as settlement amount in all cases including award of Rs 4,38,15,000 in 39 MACT Cases.
Furthermore, the Executive Chairman JKLSA virtually interacted with the disabled person in the MACT Court and also presented the cheque to his attending counsel on his behalf.
The 2nd National Lok Adalat of 2026 witnessed a huge participation of officers/officials from different departments, litigants.
The success of the 2nd National Lok Adalat reflects the judiciary’s commitment to resolving disputes through mutual understanding and compromise. Such initiatives not only lessen the backlog of cases in the courts but also strengthen the public’s faith in the legal system.
