Srinagar, Aug 20: Jammu and Kashmir Judicial Academy (JKJA) today organised a one day Refresher Training Programme on “Arbitration & Conciliation Act, 1996: Law, Practice and Procedure” for District & Sessions Judges of UTs of J&K and Ladakh.
The training programme was held under the inspiring vision of Justice Pankaj Mithal, Chief Justice, High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh (Patron-in-Chief, J&K Judicial Academy) and guidance of Justice Sindhu Sharma, Chairperson Judicial Academy and Justice Javed Iqbal Wani and Justice Wasim Sadiq Nargal; members of Governing Committee for Jammu and Kashmir Judicial Academy, a press release said.
The training programme was inaugurated by Justice Pankaj Mithal, Chief Justice, High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh in presence of Justice Sindhu Sharma who had joined the inaugural session of the programme through virtual mode, from Jammu. Manish Mehrotra, Advocate, High Court, Lucknow was the Resource Person for the training programme.
The training programme was held both in physical as well as virtual mode. In his inaugural address, Justice Pankaj Mithal described Arbitration as an extremely powerful medium of dispute resolution which should be simple, clear, and more responsive to the requirements of the situation.
Chief Justice, while emphasising on the importance of the inclusion of an arbitration clause in all agreements and deeds executed between the parties, stressed upon the necessity of developing the arbitration law in India capable of catering to the specific requirements of dispute resolution in the Indian context instead of adopting a foreign model. He stated that it is necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of the present law and its usefulness, particularly in small business ventures to realize the objective of dispute resolution through the mode of arbitration.
Manish Mehrotra, resource person of the programme, in his special remarks described arbitration as a parallel system of dispute resolution for dispensing justice although it is more often seen as an alternative mode of dispute resolution. He underscored the effectiveness of arbitration as a medium of peaceful settlement of discords.
Director, J&K Judicial Academy, Shahzad Azeem while welcoming the participanan, gave an overview of the programme. He stated that arbitration is a healer of conflicts and is a trusted mechanism for attaining justice and establishing peace. He also stated that arbitration has been a practiced concept of non-judicial dispute resolution much prior to any codified law and is a credible resort for peaceful dispute resolution which must be simple, technical and more responsive to the realities of the situation.