Ministry of Law and Justice issues Clarification regarding operation of Fast Track Courts and other measures for speedy justice. Finance Commission (FC) had recommended the setting up of 1800 Fast Track Courts (FTCs) during 2015-20 for speedy trial of specific cases of heinous nature, civil cases related to women, children, senior citizen, disabled persons, persons infected with terminal ailments etc. and property related cases pending for more than 5 years.
A “Prison Management Application” (e-Prison Software) integrated with “Inter-Operable Criminal Justice System” has been introduced which facilitates State Prison Authorities to capture data of prisoners and identify those prisoners in a quick and efficient manner. It also helps to identify pending cases for consideration by the “Undertrial Prisoner Review Committee (UTRCs)”. UTRCs have been established in all the districts which conduct quarterly meetings.
SLSAs have also set up Legal Services Clinics in prisons, which provide free legal aid to needy persons. These Legal Services Clinics are managed by empanelled Legal Services Advocates and trained para-legal volunteers. Such clinics have been set up in jails to ensure that all prisoners have access to advocates to represent them and to provide them with legal aid and advice. NALSA also organizes awareness camps in prisons to create awareness about the legal rights of prisoners including the availability of free legal aid, plea bargaining, Lok Adalats and their right to bail.
