Question : INTRODUCTION OF NYAYA PANCHAYAT BILL

(a) whether the Government is considering a proposal to introduce Nyaya Panchayat Bill for empowering village Panchayats to resolve disputes, both criminal and civil of minor nature;

(b) if so, the salient features of the Bill;

(c) whether the Inter-Ministerial consultation along with consultation with State Governments and other stake-holders have since been completed;

(d) if so, the details thereof; and

(e) the present status of the Bill and the time by which it is likely to be finalised and introduced?

THE MINISTER OF STATE IN THE MINISTRY OF PANCHAYATI RAJ (SHRI NIHAL CHAND)

(a) to (e): Ministry of Panchayati Raj had prepared a Draft Nyaya Panchayat Bill to provide for the establishment of Nyaya Panchayats, at the level of every Gram Panchayat or a cluster of Gram Panchayats, for providing a system of fair and speedy justice, both civil and criminal, to the citizens at their doorsteps. After taking into consideration the comments received from the concerned Central Ministries/ Departments and the States/UTs, the draft Nyaya Panchayat Bill was forwarded to the Ministry of Law and Justice for their inputs. However, the Ministry of Law and Justice has raised a number of points including the basic question of Cons- titutional validity of bringing in the proposed legislation. Since the issues raised by the Ministry of Law and Justice are not expected to be resolved in the near future, no time frame has been fixed for introduction of the said Bill in Parliament.