SHIMLA, Sept 2:
Justice Madan B Lokur of the Supreme Court today said that the judiciary has played a vital role in providing justice to the downtrodden through Public Interest Litigations (PIL).
Lokur was here to inaugurate the fourth of a series of lectures on ‘Different Facets of the Indian Constitution’ organised by the Himachal Pradesh State Legal Services (HPSLS) at the High Court premises.
He expressed happiness over the idea of having the lectures to educate people about the legal system.
“Sometimes there exists laws, but they are not being implemented, and on the other hand there are no laws on some issues. In both the cases, it is the duty of the court to impart justice to the common people,” he said speaking on ‘Social and Economic Justice’.
He said PILs have helped the Supreme Court and High Courts to protect the right of prisoners, poor sections of the society, women and children.
Stressing that judicial activism was necessary to impart fair justice, Lokur said that it should be used judiciously and also expressed concern over the social and economic justice in the society.
“At present 60 per cent of wealth of the nation was possessed by only 1 per cent of the population, whereas 99 per cent was left with only 40 per cent,” he said.
Lokur called upon policy makers and economists to come up with remedies to cope up with such issues to provide economic justice.
He also facilitated 16 pro-bono mediators and advocates associated with the HPSLS on the occasion and inaugurated a mediation centre in the high court premises.
Himachal Pradesh High Court’s acting Chief Justice Sanjay Karol said that the HPSLS was also organising tree plantation drives all over the state.
The authority was also organising pre-litigation programmes in order to provide speedy justice to the common people, Karol said.
A pre-litigation mediation adalat was organised in the high court on September 1 to settle the claim of 45 people who had died in HRTC bus accidents on August 12 and 13, he said. (PTI)