Press Releases Archive

Lok Satta Party President Dr. Jayaprakash Narayan has requested Chief Minister K. Rosaiah to take immediate steps for constituting gram nyayalayas (rural courts).

The Gram Nyayalayas Act promises speedy, accessible, and affordable justice to the poor who have gone without it because of barriers of costs, distance, language, and procedures.

This enabling law, at one stroke, provides for the creation of over 1100 local courts in Andhra Pradesh.

In a letter to the Chief Minister, Dr. JP recalled that the Union Government is committed to bearing the entire capital cost and reimbursing a substantial part of the running costs of the courts. Setting up a court will cost around Rs.18 lakh and its annual maintenance, Rs. 6.4 lakh.

Since the Union Law Minister has announced the allocation of Rs.1400 crore for setting up courts across the country this year, the State should send proposals to the Union government for financial assistance.

Dr. JP requested the Chief Minister to make budgetary allocations, and provide infrastructure for the courts and approach the High Court on the framing of rules and appointment of judges.

Dr. JP marked a copy of the letter to the Chief Justice of the High Court, the Governor, and the State Law Minister.

Party spokespersons Mr. Katari Srinivasa Rao and Mr. V. Vijayendar Reddy released the text of Dr. JP’s letter at a media conference here today.

The Lok Satta Party today charged financial institutions with bias and the State Government with indifference in going to the assistance of SC and ST entrepreneurs.

Talking to the media, party spokesperson Katari Srinivasa Rao pointed out that banks and other financial institutions extended loans freely and without even collaterals to the socially well connected while they denied loans to SC and ST entrepreneurs without any collateral guarantee.

The State Government which had promised to arrange financial assistance of Rs.25,000 crore to 5000 SCs and STs in five years had enabled only 200 SCs and STs to access bank loans of less than Rs.100 crore.

Mr. Srinivasa Rao said that the Government squandered thousands of crores of rupees on populist schemes like supply of rice at Rs.2 a kg which merely perpetuated poverty. In contrast, grant of loans to SC, ST entrepreneurs would make them self-reliant.

If the Government has the will, it can facilitate bank financing by providing guarantee to SC, ST entrepreneurs.

Mr. Srinivasa Rao welcomed the State Government decision to appoint an Ombudsman in each district to go into irregularities in National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme implementation.