• Promotes amicable Dispute Resolution and Access to Justice for all

SRINAGAR: In a significant stride towards delivering timely and amicable justice, , District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) in collaboration with the District Judiciary Srinagar successfully organized the Ist National Lok Adalat of the year 2026 at the District Court Complex Mominabad, Srinagar, and at the Court of the Additional Special Mobile Magistrate/JMIC Panthachowk.

 The Lok Adalat was held under the  guidance of Justice Arun Palli, Chief Justice, High Court J&K and Ladakh (Patron-in-Chief, J&K Legal Services Authority), Justice Sanjeev Kumar, Judge, High Court of J&K and Ladakh /Executive Chairman, J&K Legal Services Authority and overall supervision of Haq Nawaz Zargar  Principal District & Sessions Judge/ Chairman, DLSA Srinagar, and  Shazia Tabasum, Member Secretary, J&K Legal Services Authority.

The Lok Adalat was inaugurated by  Haq Nawaz Zargar, Principal District & Sessions Judge/ Chairman, DLSA Srinagar, in presence of judicial officers, members of the bar, court staff and DLSA Staff. To facilitate the amicable settlement of cases, 12 benches were constituted, in which overall 49252 cases were taken up for settlement out of which 48342  cases were amicably settled and Rs. 56981763  was awarded as settlement amount.

Wherein the First Bench was presided over  by Kusoom Lata Pandita, Additional District Judge and by  Anjum Ara, Ist Additional District & Sessions Judge Srinagar. The 2nd Bench was presided over by Naushad Ahmad Khan and  Zirgham Hamid, Ist Add. Munsiff/JMIC Srinagar. the 3rd Bench was presided over by Farooq Ahmad Bhat, Additional District & Sessions Judge Srinagar and  Tabasum, Chief Judicial Magistrate, Srinagar. The 4th Bench was presided over by Renu Dogra, Principal Judge Family Court Srinagar and Preet Simran Kour.

The 4th Bench was presided over by Addl. Distt. & Sessions Judge  Srinagar. The 5th Bench was presided over by  Mehreen Mushtaq, Addl. Spl Judge Anti Corruption  Srnagar and Fayaz Ahmad Qureshi, Presiding Officer, MACT, Court Srinagar  in which 70 cases were taken out of which  38 cases were amicably settled and Rs 28990000  was awarded as settlement amount. During the Lok Adalat proceedings, cheques amounting to Rs. 15082485 were distributed on the spot among the beneficiaries by the Principal District & Sessions Judge Srinagar along with the Learned Judicial Officers, thereby ensuring immediate relief to the litigants. 

The 6th Bench was presided over by  Fida Hussain Nayek, Municipal Magistrate, Srinagar  and Junaid Imtiyaz Mir, Sub-Judge Srinagar. The 7th  Bench was presided over by Mohammad Ishtiyaq Alam Baba, Forest Magistrate Srinagar and Massarat Jabeen, PT& E Magistrate.  The 8th Bench was presided over by Shabir Ahmad Malik, Spl. Mobile Magistrate Traffic and Mufti Nahida, Addl. Special Mobile Magistrate Traffic Srinagar. The 9th Bench was presided over by Tarun Mahajan, City Judge Srinagar and Vikas Bhardwaj, 2nd Additional Munsiff, Srinagar.

The 10th Bench was presided over by Shayesta Nazir, City Munsiff Srinagar and Nazia Hassan, 4th Addl. Munsiff Srinagar. The 11th Bench was presided over by Mainaz Qadir, Additional Spl. Mobile Magistrate/JMIC Panthachowk Srinagar and Adv. Baba Sajad and 12th Bench was presided over by Dr. Farah Deeba, Officiating President District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission Srinagar and Shabnum Munshi, Member District  Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission Srinagar.

During the proceedings, the Principal District & Sessions Judge, Srinagar personally inspected all the Lok Adalat benches at the District Court Complex Srinagar as well as Court of the Additional Spl. Mobile Magistrate/JMIC Panthachowk to review the progress and ensure smooth functioning of the proceedings.

The Ist National Lok Adalat of 2026 witnessed huge participation from officers and officials of various departments, litigants, advocates, and other stakeholders. The success of the Lok Adalat reflects the judiciary’s commitment to resolving disputes through mutual understanding and compromise. Such initiatives not only help in reducing the backlog of cases in courts but also strengthen the public’s faith in the justice delivery system and promote access to justice for all.

In loving memory of Dr. Priya Ranjan: A mentor who treated me like family
A Profound Loss: JK Monitor Mourns the Passing of Founding Chairman Dr. Priya Ranjan

We at JK Monitor are profoundly saddened by the sudden demise of our Founding Chairman, Dr. Priya Ranjan.IN LOVING MEMORY Dr Priya Ranjan

A brilliant mind who studied at Netarhat Residential School and graduated in Electrical Engineering from IIT Kharagpur before earning his PhD from the University of Maryland, Dr. Ranjan chose to return to India and dedicate his life to teaching, research and social good.

His pioneering work in networked systems, AI, robotics and biomedical applications—especially computer-vision tools for early detection of cancer and heart disease—reflected his deep belief that advanced technology must serve humanity.

For more than 15 years at JK Monitor, he remained a loyal friend, mentor and collaborator, marked by rare humility, intellectual integrity and quiet generosity. His passing leaves a void that cannot be filled. Priya, you will be deeply missed. Your life continues to remind us that knowledge finds its highest purpose in the service of others.

— Team JK Monitor

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Your voice can reach the world: At JK Monitor, we firmly believe that every well-researched idea has the power to inspire change beyond geographical boundaries. We are delighted to share an encouraging message from one of our esteemed contributors, Dr. Rakesh Verma (J&K Forest Services). “His article, ‘When Trees Become Rights-Bearing Citizens: A Lesson from Canada for India’s Ecological Future,’ published on JK Monitor, received appreciation from La Compagnie des Papillons Bleus, the French non-profit organisation that founded and promotes the Universal Declaration of Tree Rights.”.  Read the message here