The High Court on Wednesday asked Social Welfare Department (SWD) to explore possibility of providing “sustenance” to several persons who had approached the trial courts for relief.
A division bench of Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice Rajnesh Oswal directed the Member Secretary State Legal Service Authority (JKSLSA), M K Sharma to provide the details as well as copies of the orders passed by the trial courts in the cases to Secretary, SWD for examination.
The Secretary, the Court said, may look into the matter and examine the possibilities of providing sustenance in cash or kind to those persons in whose favour maintenance orders were passed by the trial courts but were not being complied with, keeping in view COVID19 crisis.
The Court issued the directions after going through the status report filed the Member Secretary SLSA, attesting to compilation of the cases involving the maintenance as well as child custody issues.
“Be that as it may, cases in which the orders stand passed would show that a judicial mind has found a party in need of sustenance and maintenance. This would include the wives, children and parents of the respondents against whom orders stand passed,” the Court said.
With regard to a case titled “Master Shine Choudharyvs Pawan Kumar” which is pending in the court of Special Railway Magistrate, Jammu, the Court asked the Member Secretary SLSA to look into the matter and explore the possibility of virtual mediation to assist the parties in resolving all their disputes.
The Court left it open to the Member Secretary SLSA to discuss the matter, if he deemed it proper, with Veena Ralli, Organizing Secretary, Samadhan Mediation and Conciliation Centre, Delhi High Court, for conducting the mediation.