Online Desk:  The ‘Village Courts (Amendment) Bill, 2024’ was passed in Parliament on Tuesday, empowering the village courts to impose fines of up to Tk 3 lakh.

Local Government, Rural Development and Cooperatives Minister M Tazul Islam moved the Bill and it was passed.

As per the Bill, a village court comprises five members, including the union parishad chairman.

In some cases, the court cannot function if any member remains absent.

According to the draft law, if a vote occurs on a disputed matter in the absence of a member, and an equal number of votes are cast in favour of two sides, then the party gaining the chairman’s vote will be declared victorious.

Additionally, in some instances of the previous law, the term ‘minor’ is being replaced with ‘child’.

In 2013, by amending the Village Court Act, the government strengthened the court allowing it to impose fines up to Tk75,000.

According to the objective of the Bill, Village Courts Ordinance, 1976 was enacted to ensure speedy and easy settlement of minor disputes of local people in rural areas.

Later, the Village Courts Act, 2006 was enacted by repealing the Ordinance and some sections of the Act were amended in 2013.

The Government is working to promote the concept and process of alternative dispute resolution in minor disputes to reduce the pressure on the institutional justice system and to ensure easy and speedy access to justice for the poor and disadvantaged people.
A Village Court is a semi-formal dispute resolution mechanism founded on the concept of alternative dispute resolution.