Lucknow gurdwara delivers speedy justice, free of cost

Sarabjeet Kaur, 45, has come here all the way from Wellington, New Zealand to seek justice for her father Mahendra Singh, a resident of Alambagh, who was kicked out of his house by his elder son. Sarabjeet pleaded his case in the lok adalat organised by Gurdwara Alambagh in Lucknow on Saturday.

A 35-year-old woman, ousted from her house by her in-laws after she lost her husband recently, also approached the gurdwara. Her case was taken up for trial on priority. She is now living in her house and her share in property has been given back.

LUCKNOW: These two cases are ample illustration of how Sikhs and Hindus of the area abide by judgment of the court organised in Gurdwara Alambagh. This court is held regularly to dispense justice to those who don’t want to fight a legal battle to settle their disputes. Their cases are settled in a short time, with no one the wiser because the proceedings are confined to the “guru ghar”.

In the past two years, more than 300 cases, mostly of Sikh families and some Hindus too, had been solved in the gurdwara, said its working president Nirmal Singh. In fact, the gurdwara court has become so popular that it caters not only to the families in Lucknow but also from many other places, including Chhattisgarh and Bihar. Nirmal Singh said over 50 cases were bitterly fought in civil courts for the past 20 years. But when they were withdrawn and taken to the gurdwara court, they were settled in three or four hearings.

Cases pertaining to domestic quarrels, property, domestic violence and land grabbing had been settled in the gurdwara with mutual consent , said Ratpal Singh ‘Goldy’, head of the team which ensures that the judgment of the “panch” in the gurdwara is implemented in its true spirit. This team is called decision implementation team and it works in its own style if any party refuses to abide by the decision.

UNDERTAKING BEFORE GURU GRANT SAHIB

“We obtain an undertaking from both the parties on paper that they will abide by the judgment delivered by our ‘panch’. Both parties know that we cannot side with anyone at a place where we worship and where Guru Granth Sahib is present. That’s why we tell them to take an oath in front of Guru Granth Sahib that they will not reject the judgment or appeal against the judgment,” said Ratpal Singh.

He said the team ,consisting of seniors like Pradhan Joginder Singh, Bhupinder Singh Pinda, himself and Harjeet Singh met both parties, listened to them and came out with a judgment after considering each aspect of the case. “Before sitting for the hearing, the panch pray in front of Guru Granth Sahib to give them strength to deliver justice and remain neutral,” he said.

The gurdwars charges nothing for settlement of cases. All the expenses are borne by the management.