The joint sitting of the Parliament endorsed the Public Accounts Committee’s (PAC) recommendation to establish either mobile benches or high courts in the eastern and southern regions. According to the committee, currently, people from the eastern and southern region travel to Thimphu to appeal to the high court.
The National Council’s Member of Parliament from Samdrup Jongkhar, Jigme Wangchuk said many people from the far-flung places in the east are not able to appeal to a higher court, after the dzongkhag courts pass the verdict, due to financial burden and long travel distance.
“I feel it is about time for the government or the judiciary to establish some regional high courts or some mobile courts whereby drangpons can go there for a few months and attend their cases. This way people will get fair justice.”
“It is inconvenient for the people of the southern and eastern region to travel all the way to Thimphu to appeal to the high court,” added Ugyen Tshering, National Council’s Member of Parliament from Paro and Chairperson of PAC.
Other members of the parliament also supported the committee’s recommendation. The committee proposed five other recommendations. Considering the increasing number of cases in the dzongkhag courts, the committee recommended posting registrars or Drangpon Rabjams in 15 dzongkhag and 13 dungkhag courts to facilitate a fair, timely and efficient trial. Other recommendations include delinking notary services from the judiciary, implementation of legal aid, refining the procedures for appealing cases and amending the Judicial Service Act 2007.
Choni Dema
