We should start dialogue on how to find a quick justice delivery system for genuine litigants by discouraging “speculative litigation” that are causing burden on the system, said N. Santosh Hegde, the former judge of the Supreme Court, here on Saturday.
Providing only one appeal against the orders passed by the trial courts would be a solution to ensure quick end to litigation, he said while inaugurating a mega Lok Adalat organised by the Karnataka State Legal Services Authority (KSLSA).
“Let’s start thinking that there could be a quick end to the litigation. Those who enter the justice delivery system must also have a quick exit. Let’s find an exit which is as important as access to justice,” he said.
“...a lot of speculative litigation are entering into the system... There will be interim orders in various courts up to the Supreme Court on such litigation... And these speculative litigation are causing burden on the justice delivery system,” he said.
He added that the present justice delivery system had provided a way for “speculative litigation” in the form of multiple appeals and fora for revision over the orders passed by trial courts.
“One appeal is enough. Superior courts such as the Supreme Court and the High Courts should have specified role and they cannot be made nodal appellate courts for every case ... We need one appeal to re-look into the case as after all it is the human beings who are deciding the cases,” Mr. Hegde said while referring to the one appeal system that exists in some developed countries. He was of the view that people would get used to such a system of one appeal like in the present system how they have accepted the apex court as the final chance for appeal.
“I was thinking about quick justice delivery system for a long time. This is the only way out that occurred to my mind,” he said.
Meanwhile, Chief Justice of the High Court of Karnataka Abhay Shreeniwas Oka said cases related to senior citizens under the provisions of the Maintenance and Welfare of Parents and Senior Citizens Act and domestic violences could be included for amicable settlement in the Lok Adalats in future.
High Court judge and Executive Chairperson of the KSLSA Aravind Kumar said that around 92 lakh cases were amicably settled through various Lok Adalats conducted by the KSLSA since 2014.