Over 1,400 cases settled at Lok Adalat in Bhatkal

Bhatkal: As many as 1,402 cases were settled through compromise during the Lok Adalat held at the Bhatkal court complex on Saturday. A total of 1,526 cases had been taken up for consideration during the session.

At the Principal Civil and JMFC Court, Deepa Aralagundi served as the judicial conciliator and Sahana Mogera as the non-judicial conciliator. Out of 598 cases selected for settlement, 547 were resolved. A sum of Rs 2,17,98,566 was awarded to the parties as compensation and penalties, while some fines were collected on behalf of the government.

In the Additional Civil and JMFC Court, Dhanavati acted as the judicial conciliator and Shabina as the non-judicial conciliator. Of the 625 cases taken up for settlement, 575 were resolved. Compensation and penalties amounting to Rs 2,26,60,875 were awarded, with fines also collected for the government.

At the Senior Civil and JMFC Court, Kantha Kurani served as the judicial conciliator and Shravya Naik as the non-judicial conciliator. Out of 303 cases selected for settlement, 280 were disposed of. A total of Rs 1,99,86,153 was awarded as compensation and penalties, with fines collected on behalf of the government.

During the Lok Adalat at the Senior Civil Court, a family dispute between a couple was also resolved through mediation. The couple, who had married in 2020 and have a daughter, had been living separately since 2024 due to family disagreements, and a case had been filed in 2025. Following mediation at the Lok Adalat, the couple agreed to reconcile, exchanging roses and sweets to mark their reunion.

The Lok Adalat saw a large turnout of people at the court premises, with many applications related to birth certificates being submitted. Several participants appreciated the settlement of numerous cases through mutual agreement.

However, some visitors expressed dissatisfaction over the lack of adequate seating arrangements due to the heavy crowd. Others pointed out that the absence of microphone or display systems made it difficult for those waiting outside to hear the names being called inside the court.

A few applicants also alleged that their applications could not be considered due to a shortage of required documents. They said that although they had submitted copies of documents such as ration cards, Aadhaar cards, voter ID cards and passports earlier, their birth certificate applications were not accepted on the day of the Lok Adalat.

According to them, they had been instructed earlier to attend the Lok Adalat with original documents after submitting copies. However, on the day of the event, additional documents related to their parents were reportedly sought. They said that prior clarity on required documents would have been helpful.