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village court

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What is village court?


 


Gram Adalat is a court formed under the Union Parishad to settle small civil and criminal cases in rural areas. In simple words, according to the Gram Adalat Act 2006, the court that sits in the Union Parishad to settle civil and criminal cases worth 25,000 rupees in the Union Parishad is the Gram Adalat. Gram Adalats provide access to justice for disadvantaged backward communities in rural areas. The people of the entire jurisdiction can file this case in the village court of the Union Parishad by paying 2 rupees in criminal case and 4 rupees in civil case. No other court can accept the full jurisdiction of the village court. There is no need for a lawyer to file a case in the village court. Due to which there is no chance for the case to be prolonged. This court sits in the presence of local UP members and honorable judges. The number of judges in the court is 05. Two nominated members shall be for the petitioner and 02 members shall be for the respondent. One of whom must be a respective UP member. As the trial is held in the presence of local UP members and dignitaries, there is no scope for false witness.


 


 


What information should be given in the application form in the village court case?

 


1. The application must be submitted in writing.

2. The name and address of the Union Parishad to which the application will be made must be present.

3. The name, address and identity of the applicant and the respondent should be there.

4. If there is a witness, the name, address and identity of the witness should be there.

5. The incident, cause of incident, place of incident and union name, time, date should be there.

6. Form of complaint or claim, should have value.

7. The amount of damages, the relief sought must be there.

8. The relationship of the parties must be mentioned.

9. Witnesses must have a role.

10. If the case is filed late, the reason should be mentioned.

11. Applicant must have signature.

12. There must be a date of filing of the case. (Section 3)


 


Appeals of Gram Adalat:


 


Gram Adalat has been established to ensure and facilitate the access of the poor people in the judicial system. Gram Adalats have been established so that the poor people of the villages can protect or establish their rights easily and at nominal cost. Small village disputes can be settled easily before they become big in this court. In 2006, the Government of Bangladesh established Gram Adalat through an ordinance to strengthen the foundation of justice in rural townships. This union level court has reduced the pressure of cases in the judge court and has brought dynamism to the entire judicial system. However, because the village court is run by the common people and their elected representatives or due to the behavioral defects of the people's representatives, this court often fails to protect its image. But legally Gram Adalat is a full court.


Penalty of village court:

According to the Gram Adalat Act, 1976, it has the jurisdiction to try both criminal and civil cases in specific cases. In this case, the value of fine or compensation was limited to 5 thousand rupees. The law enacted in May 2006 under Act No. 19 amending the Gram Adalat Ordinance of 1976 is more or less the same as the earlier law. However, the main change here is in the monetary limit of compensation in cases, which has been raised from Tk 5,000 to Tk 25,000. In both the 1976 and 2006 Acts, its formation, management, scrutiny of cases, issuance of decrees and preservation of records of proceedings have been identified as activities of the Union Parishad.


Grievances which are not tried in Village Courts:

a) In case of criminal case

If the accused person has previously been convicted by any other court of any cognizable offence.


b) In case of civil suit

• When the interests of a minor are involved;

• if any arbitration arrangement (arbitration agreement) has been entered into between the parties to the dispute;

• If the case involves a government or local authority or any public servant acting;

* No case can be filed in the village court against any unnatural person.


Through the village court, the poor people of the village will be freed from the burden and harassment of cases piled up in the judge's court. According to the Gram Adalat Ordinance and the Arbitration Court Ordinance, the Union Parishads have been constituted with the responsibility of conducting trials according to certain rules. As a result, the facility of village court is available at home without going to the city. According to the Courts Act-1976 and the amended Village Courts Act, 2006, the marginalized groups of villages will get the benefit of resolving both criminal and civil disputes in these courts. For example:

• Access to justice in less time and at nominal cost;

• Poor people have easy access to the judicial process because these courts do not have the opportunity to hire lawyers;

• Although the village court procedure is formal, settlement is amicable;

• Even though the village court is a legal system, the disputing parties consider it a social organization and consider the judgment of the village court as a social decision;

• The social bond between the disputing parties remains intact despite the judgment of the village court which does not exist during or after the judgment in the Magistrate or High Court;

• Implementation of judgments is easier as village court judges are local;

As the Gram Adalat has a legal basis, the judgment of this Court is accepted by the High Court.


To get this government service, a written complaint must be submitted to the Chairman of the Union Parishad on a white paper.


In case of cases triable by the village court, any party to the dispute may apply to the Chairman of the concerned Union Parishad for setting up a village court by paying a fee of 4 taka (in case of civil case) or 2 taka (in case of criminal case).


All the details that should be in the application form-1. Name of Union Parishad to which application is being made;

2. Name, address and identity of the applicant;

3. the name of the union in which the offense occurred or the cause of action arose;

4. the nature and extent of the complaint or claim with brief details;

5. Remedies sought;

6. The applicant shall sign the written application; Note that no application can be made against an unnatural person. The chairman can reject the application if he finds the complaint unsubstantiated. However, in this case, the application form should be returned to the applicant by writing the reason for rejection.

All concerned Union Parishads except non-naturalized persons will get the facility of this village court.

A village court is constituted with a total of 5 members comprising 1 chairman and two members nominated by each party to the dispute. One of the 2 members nominated by each party shall be the member of the Union Parishad concerned. The Chairman of the Union Parishad will be the Chairman of the Gram Adalat. However, if the chairman is unable to perform his duties due to any reason, or there is an objection about his neutrality, then any other member of the council shall perform the duties of the chairman of the court. If any party fails to nominate a member within the prescribed time, the Court shall be deemed to have been validly constituted without such nomination. If a party cannot nominate a member of the Union Parishad due to partisanship, another person may be nominated with the permission of the Chairman.


After applying for trial both the plaintiff and the defendant shall nominate two Judges of the Village Court. One of the nominated members shall be a member of the Union Council concerned and the other shall be a dignitary of the area.


The decision of the village court shall be announced publicly. The majority of the decision is taken, the provision must be made in writing. And after the decision of the court, the decree shall be issued. ) is passed by a majority vote, then the said decision shall be binding on both parties and no appeal shall lie against the said decision;

If the service of the Gram Court is not available-

• According to the provisions, if a decision of three or two votes is not binding, within thirty days of the announcement of the decision, any party may appeal to the court of the first class magistrate (cognizance court) in the case of criminal cases and the court of the assistant judge (munsef) in the case of civil cases;

• Gram Adalat decree for payment of compensation shall not exceed 6 months.


The Gram Adalat Ordinance, 1976 has given the responsibility of conducting retrial to the Union Councils. The criminal triable sections of the Gram Adalat are- 160, 323, 334, 341, 342, 352, 358, 426, 504, 506 (Part I), 508, 509 of the Penal Code. and Article 510. Also 379, 380, 381, 403, 406, 417, 420, 427, 428 , 429 (in case of damage up to fifty thousand rupees) and 141, 143, 147 related to livestock (under ten accused), Sections 24/26/27 of 1871.

Civil suits are- (1) Suits for recovery of money due under any contract or other document; (2) any immovable property in the case of spousal value; (3) suit for dispossession of any immovable property and recovery of possession thereof within the year; (4) suits for damages for unlawful alienation of any immovable property; (5) Cases of compensation for trespassing of cattle and (6) Cases of compensation for wages payable to agricultural laborers (for the above cases when the value of immovable or immovable property is above Rs. 25,000/-).