“Justice Should Be Served To The Last Man In Queue”: Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad At 6th State Meet Of Jharkhand DLSAs

On 28 February, 2025, the Jharkhand State Legal Services Authority organised its 6th State Level Meet of District Legal Services Authorities (DLSAs) at Shaurya Sabhagar, Ranchi, where Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad of the Jharkhand High Court emphasised that justice delivery mechanisms must extend to the most marginalised sections. He observed that “justice should be served to the 'last man in queue', which means that the people living in the remotest area of the State should be reached out.

The programme was inaugurated by Justice Sujit Narayan Prasad, Executive Chairman, JHALSA, Justice Ananda Sen, Chairman of the Jharkhand High Court Legal Services Committee, Justice A.K. Chaudhary, and former High Court judge Justice Ambuj Nath. The dignitaries also launched Project Bal Suraksha and released a compilation of schemes and projects of NALSA and JHALSA. Cheques towards victim compensation were distributed, and 24 Bolero multi-utility vehicles, designated as “Nyaya Rath”, were flagged off to strengthen legal aid outreach.

In his address, Justice Prasad underlined the role of Para Legal Volunteers (PLVs) in bridging the last-mile gap in access to justice. He described PLVs as “our main source of energy” and noted that they act as coordinators between the administration and citizens to ensure that welfare schemes reach remote regions. He further stressed the importance of victim rehabilitation in trafficking cases, observing that rehabilitation remains a prominent solution in addressing trafficking.

Justice Ananda Sen highlighted the disconnect between institutional intent and ground-level implementation, stating that “there is a gap between what we intend to do and what exactly is being done at the grass-root level, which needs to be bridged.” Emphasising the social role of legal services institutions, he remarked that injustice often goes unrecognised in everyday life, observing that discrimination within households is frequently normalised, though it constitutes injustice.

Justice A.K. Chaudhary, in his address, noted that the platform brought together stakeholders from the judiciary, executive, police, and prison administration. He stated that such meetings enable stakeholders to overcome bottlenecks and evolve more effective mechanisms for delivering legal services, particularly to those standing “last in the queue.”

The event was attended by Chairpersons and Secretaries of all DLSAs in Jharkhand, along with Deputy Commissioners, Superintendents of Police, Legal Aid Defence Counsel, Permanent Lok Adalat Chairpersons, jail superintendents, mediators, and Para Legal Volunteers.

The meet will continue over two days, with five technical sessions scheduled on various aspects of legal services delivery