Fast Track Courts For Bouncing Cheque Cases !

New Delhi, Nov 24 (UNI) With disputes over 3.8 million dishonoured cheques clogging India's judicial system, government experts today suggested fast track magisterial courts to try such cases, the Law and Justice Ministry reported this evening.

''The Law Commission recommends setting up of Fast Track Courts at Magisterial level to deal with the huge pendency of dishonoured cheque cases,'' a Ministry statement said.

The suggestion came in a Report on 'Fast Track Magisterial Courts for Dishonoured Cheque Cases' Law Commission Chairman A R Lakshmanan forwarded to Law and Justice Minister Hans Raj Bhardwaj.

With such a large pendency of dishonoured cheque cases, the ''entire credibility of the business within and outside the country is suffering a serious setback.'' the statement said.

It pointed out that dishonour of cheque by a bank causes incalculable loss, injury and inconvenience to the payee. ''The credibility of issuance of cheque is also being eroded to a large extent,'' it acknowledged.

The Law Commission took up the study ''suo motu'' in pursuance of one of its terms of reference: ''to suggest suitable measures for quick redressal of citizens grievances, in the field of law.'' The study pointed to an urgent need to restore credibility of the instrument, trade, business, commerce and the fundamental right to speedy trial.

It also stressed the need to ensure that genuine and honest citizens (or) commercial community'' is not harassed or inconvenienced.

Indian courts have some 30 million cases pending before them, many for years, even decades.

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