A husband and wife reunited after over 18 years of separation following mediation at the National Lok Adalat. (File)
A long‑pending marital dispute saw a positive resolution during the National Lok Adalat held on Saturday, with a husband and wife reuniting after more than 18 years of separation.
The reconciliation was achieved through mediation and stood out among the many cases settled during the Lok Adalat, which was conducted across all 22 districts and 35 sub‑divisions of Haryana by the District Legal Services Authorities.
The couple were married on December 4, 2001, but separated on July 5, 2008 following marital discord. Several attempts at reconciliation over the years failed, eventually leading to litigation. During a mediation session presided over by Presiding Officer‑cum‑Additional Principal Judge (Family Court, Gurugram) Poonam Kanwar and Legal Aid Member Alreena Senapati, both parties engaged in constructive dialogue.
According to an official statement, the disputes between the couple were resolved amicably through effective mediation, following which they agreed to resume their marital life.
Another notable settlement involved a five‑year‑old custody dispute under the Guardians and Wards Act, in which a grandmother had sought custody of her minor grandson. The matter was amicably resolved by Principal Judge Vivek Singhal (Family Court, Kurukshetra) after counselling and judicial intervention, keeping the welfare of the child as the paramount consideration.
As per the settlement, custody of the minor child will remain with the mother, while the grandmother has been granted monthly visitation rights within the court premises.
In a related meeting held on December 10, Justice Lisa Gill stressed the need for sincere, coordinated and proactive efforts for effective case disposal. She urged Lok Adalat benches to actively use mediation to resolve disputes through mutual consent and ensure maximum disposal of cases, furthering the goal of accessible and affordable justice.
On the day of the Lok Adalat, District and Sessions Judge‑cum‑Member Secretary, HALSA, Jagdeep Singh monitored proceedings across the state through video conferencing. He also inspected Lok Adalat benches at the District Courts in Panchkula and interacted with litigants to ensure smooth conduct of the process.
The National Lok Adalat was organised by the Haryana State Legal Services Authority (HALSA) under the guidance of Justice Lisa Gill, Judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and Executive Chairperson, HALSA. Including pre‑Lok Adalat sittings, a total of 5,53,741 cases were disposed of, reflecting the judiciary’s commitment to providing accessible and speedy justice.