The National Legal Services Day (India) took off in 1995 with the Supreme Court of India taking initiative in the matter. The objective was to reach out to the weaker sections so that they get the benefit of legal justice. It was meant especially to offer help and support to the weaker and poor sections of people which may be women, disabled persons, Scheduled Tribes, children, Scheduled Castes, and victims of human trafficking or of natural calamities. Programmes include Lok Adalats, legal literacy programmes, awareness building, free legal aid and the like.
With the number of pending cases in the law courts soaring sky-high, how could the common folks get anywhere near legal justice? According to National Judicial Data Grid, till April 2016, 20 million cases were pending in Indian district courts The reality today is that the money bags, the politically connected or those who can afford the best lawyer at a high price get the easy way out. That is where the sting comes for ordinary people.
The apex court’s initiative is yielding results. However, Even in the midst of free legal aid, the high and the mighty can engage expert lawyers, while the poor man’s case is argued by lawyers on the free legal aid panel. Most often it is a reluctant take by the lawyer because of the unattractive remuneration.
Another sore point is the freelance method of charging fees by lawyers. Anybody can charge any amount. The sky is the limit. This ought to stop. One may talk about free legal aid, legal literacy and all that. Blah, blah, blah….. But the actual benefit goes to the high and mighty who can engage lawyers with better expertise. Are there enough dedicated, committed and social minded lawyers with an eye on social justice?