No one should be deprived of justice for want of money, says Principal District Judge

District Legal Services Authority provides free legal aid to needy individuals, ensuring justice is accessible without financial barriers.

The objective of the District Legal Services Authority was to reach out to the needy people to get justice without any hindrance, said speakers at the inaugural of a free legal aid awareness programme held here recently.

Speaking on the occasion, Principal District Judge A. Muthu Saradha said that the judiciary played the role of a catalyst by bringing the people closer to the justice system. The DLSA was totally free of cost and the services rendered by the advocates to the needy litigants would be borne by the government. “No one should be deprived of justice for want of money,” the judge said.

The awareness camp was organised in such a manner that apart from the public, representatives of non-governmental organisations and self-help groups were present. The advocates were sensitised to handle the cases in a cordial environment. The DLSA would ascertain the complaint and examine the modalities to settle them amicably without interference of the court. The idea was to bring about a solution between the two parties.

In the event of non-agreement, they would be advised to go to the court, the PDJ said and assured that the judiciary would be always ready to serve the needy litigants in the right direction. The authority would also guide the transgender persons and provide assistance to anti-drug and anti-ragging sort of crimes.

Offering felicitations, Collector M.N. Poongodi said that the weekly meeting for the public held on Mondays was able to redress a majority of the grievances. Issues like non receipt of Old Age Pension, free house site pattas were received from the public and addressed swiftly.

The State government has been implementing various schemes for the welfare of the public. One such successful scheme is ‘Pudumai Penn’ under which financial assistance of ₹1,000 is given to girls studying in government higher secondary schools. The government has also proposed to replace dwellings in slums with concrete houses. In Dindigul, 6,125 new houses have been planned, the Collector said.

Three departments - School Education, Rural Development and Revenue - were given prizes for their stalls at the camp. Judicial officers D. Triveni and R. Kanagaraj, Revenue Divisional Officer Sakthivel, Tahsildar Jayaprakash, Social Welfare Officer Pushpalatha among other officials participated.