Lok Sabha Question No. 172 (STARRED), answered on 2024-08-02
Subject: Setting up of Rural Courts
Ministry: LAW AND JUSTICE
Asked by: Shri Subbarayan K, Com. Selvaraj V

## GOVERNMENT OF INDIA MINISTRY OF LAW & JUSTICE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

## LOK SABHA

## STARRED QUESTION NO. *172

TO BE ANSWERED ON FRIDAY, THE 02 ND  AUGUST, 2024

## Setting up of Rural Courts

*172. COM. SELVARAJ V : SHRI SUBBARAYANK:

## Will the Minister of LAW AND JUSTICE be pleased to state:

(a)  whether  it  is  a  fact  that  the  Government  had  enacted  a  Law  to  set  up  gram nyayalayas (Rural Courts) in the country about 16 years ago to provide affordable justice at door steps and help clearing the huge pending cases in trial courts;

(b) if so, the details thereof;

(c) the requirement of gram nyayalayas and the number of rural courts that have been set up and are functional as on date; and

(d)  the  reasons  for  the  slow  progress  in  setting  up  the  rural  courts  and  measures proposed to be taken by the Government to set up more rural courts in the country?

## ANSWER

THE MINISTER OF STATE (INDEPENDENT CHARGE) OF THE MINISTRY OF LAW AND JUSTICE; AND MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PARLIAMENTARY AFFAIRS

(SHRI ARJUN RAM MEGHWAL)

(a) to (d):  A statement is laid on the Table of the House.

*****

## STATEMENT REFERRED TO IN REPLY TO PARTS (A) TO (D) OF LOK SABHA STARRED QUESTION No. *172 FOR ANSWER ON 02 ND AUGUST, 2024.

(a)  &  (b):  The  Law  Commission  of  India,  in  its  114 th Report,  had  suggested establishment  of  Gram  Nyayalayas  for  providing  affordable  and  quick  access  to justice to the citizens at their doorsteps. The Gram Nyayalayas Act, 2008 came into effect  from  02 nd October,  2009.  The  Act  provides  for  the  establishment  of  Gram Nyayalayas at the grass roots level for the purposes of providing access to justice to the citizens at their doorsteps and to ensure that opportunities for securing justice are not denied to any citizen by reason of social, economic or other disabilities.   The details of the Gram Nyayalayas Act, 2008, are available at https://www.indiacode.nic.in/bitstream/123456789/19258/1/gram\_nyayalay\_act\_200 8.pdf.

(c):        The  budget  estimates  for  2009-10  provided  for  a  Plan  Scheme  viz., 'Assistance to State Governments for establishing and operating Gram Nyayalayas'. While approving the proposal of the Ministry of Law and Justice for introducing the Gram Nyayalayas Bill in the Parliament, the Union Cabinet decided that the |Central Government would meet all the non-recurring expenses related to the setting up of Gram Nyayalayas in the country. It also decided that the Central Government would share the recurring expenses of the Gram Nyayalayas with the states for the first 3 years and thereafter the states would bear the entire recurring expenditure.

As  per  the  extant  guidelines,  the  Central  Government  provides  Rs.  18.00 lakhs per Gram Nyayalaya to meet non-recurring expenditure as a one time measure and bears 50% of the recurring expenses of these courts, subject to a ceiling of Rs. 3.20  lakhs  per  courts  per  annum  during  the  first  3  years.  So  far  481  Gram Nyayalayas have been notified by 15 States, of which 309 Gram Nyayalayas have been made operational in 10 States.

(d):       According to certain studies, the main reasons for slow progress in setting up of  Gram  Nyayalayas  include,  non-filling  of  the  post  of  Nyayadhikaries  in  many States, non-availability of public prosecutors, notaries and general shortage of  firstclass judicial magistrates, limited  pecuniary jurisdiction  of  Gram  Nyayalayas, insufficient staff, inadequate financial backing from States, reluctance from legal and state authorities and lack of community awareness. Besides, the issue of overlapping jurisdiction with regular courts is another reason for slow take off in respect of Gram Nyayalayas in some States. Moreover, many States have their own parallel systems of village courts functioning at panchayat level.

To set up Gram Nyayalayas in the country, it was decided in the Conference of Chief Justices of High Courts and Chief Ministers of the States on 7 th April, 2013 that the  State  Government  and  High  Courts  should  take  decision  on  setting  up  Gram Nyayalayas wherever feasible, taking into account the local issues and situations, as it is a voluntary scheme. The Central Government has been urging the States through meetings to operationalise the already notified Gram Nyayalayas on a regular basis.

*****