Gram Nyayalaya Act, 2008 | Appraisal

Details:

• Providing speedy, expeditious and affordable justice as per DPSP Article 39-A
• The Gram Nyayalaya Act, 2008, has been enacted to provide for the establishment of gram nyayalayas at the grass-root level for the purpose of providing access to justice to citizens at their doorsteps and to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by a reason of social, economic and other disabilities
• All the states in the country were required to establish nyayalayas for every panchayat in a district
• State government shall, after consultation with the High Court, specify a notification, the local limits of the area to which the jurisdiction of a gram nyayalaya shall extend and may, at any time, increase, reduce or alter such limits. 
• The gram nyayalaya shall be in addition to the courts established under any other law in time being in force
• Establishment of gram nyayalayas with central assistance including grants.
• The nyayalayas are empowered to exercise the powers of civil as well as criminal courts in respect of suits, claims, and disputes duly instituted criminal cases including criminal appeals specified in the Act and notification issued thereunder
• According to the Act, the gram nyayalayas have power of issuing summons, recording and trying the cases mostly in summary manner including execution of decrees and awarding sentences in respect of petty offences
• The nyayalayas were expected to make efforts for settlement of disputes and granting acquittal by resorting to plea-bargaining as far as possible 

Status: Max in MP 

Appraisal:
TBD

[Ref: India Year Book, Economic Times]