The Kerala High Court has recently underscored the critical importance of verifying the identities of parties involved in Lok Adalat settlements. This directive emerged from a case where a litigant alleged that an advocate had initiated and settled an accident claim in his name without his knowledge or consent.
Justice C. S. Dias, presiding over the matter, directed the Kerala Legal Services Authority to issue necessary guidelines to all District Legal Service Authorities (DLSAs) and Lok Adalats. The aim is to ensure that the identity of parties is ascertained before commencing settlement proceedings and passing an award. This move seeks to prevent instances of impersonation and unauthorized settlements.
The case in question involved a claimant who discovered that a settlement had been reached in his name only after he filed a case before the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunal. He had sought compensation for injuries sustained in a collision involving a KSRTC bus. However, the insurance company contended that the matter had already been settled in a previous proceeding before the Lok Adalat, where an advocate named K. Jelly represented the claimant and agreed to a settlement amount of Rs. 32,000. Notably, the claimant asserted that he had no knowledge of this settlement and had not authorized any such representation.
Upon investigation, the High Court found significant discrepancies in the signatures attributed to the claimant across various documents. Furthermore, the advocate who purportedly represented the claimant had passed away, making it challenging to verify the authenticity of the representation. Given these circumstances, the Court deemed it necessary to quash the Lok Adalat's award and directed that the matter be examined through a proper trial to ascertain the facts conclusively.
In reinforcing the need for stringent identity verification, the Court referred to Regulation No. 16 of the National Legal Services Authority (Lok Adalats) Regulation, 2009. This regulation mandates that Lok Adalats must verify the identity of parties, especially when they are not accompanied or represented by counsel. However, the Court emphasized that even when parties are represented by counsel, it is imperative to ensure that no forgery or impersonation occurs.
The Court also cited a precedent from the Andhra Pradesh High Court in the case of Yalamarthi Narasimha Rao v. District Legal Services Authority (Lok Ayukta) Krishna and others (2022). In that case, the Court had directed Lok Adalats to verify the identities of parties after noting instances where individuals were impersonated, and their signatures were forged.
This ruling by the Kerala High Court highlights the necessity for Lok Adalats to implement robust mechanisms for identity verification. Such measures are essential to uphold the integrity of the alternative dispute resolution process and to protect individuals from fraudulent settlements conducted without their knowledge or consent.
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