SAMBA: Under the aegis of the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) and pursuant to the directions of the J&K Legal Services Authority, Jammu/Srinagar, the District Legal Services Authority, Samba successfully organised the 3rd National Lok Adalat of the year 2026 today at the District Court Complex.
The National Lok Adalat was inaugurated by Chairman, District Legal Services Authority, Samba and Principal District & Sessions Judge, Samba Ashwani Kumar Sharma, in the presence of judicial officers, members of the Bar, litigants, court staff and other stakeholders.
The National Lok Adalat was organised with the objective of providing an effective, expeditious and cost-free mechanism for amicable resolution of disputes, thereby reducing the burden of litigation upon the courts and facilitating access to justice for all sections of society. The Lok Adalat mechanism enables parties to resolve their disputes through mutual consent and settlement in a cordial and non-adversarial environment.
For the effective conduct of the National Lok Adalat, seven benches were constituted at the District Court Complex, Samba. The benches comprised judicial officers and empanelled advocates, as under:
Chairman DLSA and Principal District & Sessions Judge Ashwani Kumar Sharma chaired the Bench No 1 with Advocate S.K. Khanmotra; Additional District & Sessions Judge Arvind Sharma chaired Bench NO 2 with Advocate Ganesh Sharma; Chief Judicial Magistrate Smriti Sharma with Advocate Ajay Gupta chaired Bench No. 3; Secretary, DLSA (Sub-Judge) Shafeeq Ahmed with Advocate Rahul Sharma formed Bench No. 4; Additional Special Mobile Magistrate Rashi Verma, with Advocate Vijay Gupta led Bench No. 5; Munsiff Ritika Jamwal with Advocate Hitesh Sharma formed Bench No. 6 and Additional Munsiff Kritika Sethi with Advocate Rajeev Gupta led Bench No. 7.
In addition, suitable benches were also constituted by the District Administration Samba, under the administrative side, for taking up and amicably resolving compoundable matters pending before the administrative authorities, as deemed appropriate.
The National Lok Adalat took up a wide range of matters, including cases pertaining to Motor Accident Claims (MACT), Land Acquisition, Traffic Challans, cases under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, criminal compoundable matters, civil cases, pre-litigation disputes and other matters amenable to settlement.
The National Lok Adalat witnessed encouraging participation from litigants and stakeholders. A total of 990 cases were taken up, out of which 864 cases were amicably disposed of, resulting in an overall settlement amount of ₹2,78,73,475/- (Rupees Two Crore Seventy-Eight Lakh Seventy-Three Thousand Four Hundred Seventy-Five only).
The successful disposal of such a substantial number of cases reflects the efficacy of the Lok Adalat mechanism in providing speedy, inexpensive and accessible justice and in promoting a culture of consensual dispute resolution.
The initiative also contributes significantly towards reducing pendency and ensuring that litigants are able to obtain relief without undergoing prolonged litigation.
The successful conduct of the National Lok Adalat was made possible through the coordinated efforts of the judicial officers, members of the Bar, court staff, Legal Aid Defence Counsel, Para-Legal Volunteers and all other stakeholders associated with the legal services programme.
