LEGAL AWARENESS SEMINAR BY DDLSA
A Legal Awareness Seminar was conducted by the Dimapur District Legal Services Authority (DDLSA) for Grades-IX & XI students at the LFHSS Chapel on 16th February 2018. The programme which began at around 9:00 AM was compered by Mrs. Moatila Ao, Panel Lawyer of DDLSA. The main speaker on the occasion was Mr. Ajongba Imchen, Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Dimapur and Secretary, DDLSA. The team from DDLSA led by the CJM of Dimapur included 8 Panel Lawyers viz. Ms. Zuchumbeni Ngullie, Ms. Sentimenla, Ms. Visheli, Ms. Nishila, mr. Yanbemo, Ms. Ale, Ms. Moatila and Ms. Dzur. The Seminar was mainly aimed at making the students aware about the different aspects of legalities including POCSO, Cybe Crimes and Human Trafficking.
Speaking on Cyber Crimes and its implications, Mr. Yanbemo, Panel Lawyer from DDLSA stated that non-judicious and unwise use of internet and social networking sites may lead to cyber crimes. According to him, under the IT Act of India, uploading of offensive and pornographic images and videos, sending threatening e-mails, calls, SMSes, stalking and internet phishing is considered as cyber crime. Even when done for fun it is considered as a serious offence. The punishment for cyber crime is a minimum fine of 1 Lakh Rupees and imprisonment of 2 years. If the offender repeats the same crime, the fine and the sentence would be doubled after the second conviction. The maximum sentence for cyber crimes may go up to 10 years or even more depending on the severity of the crime committed.
Mrs. Sentimenla, another Panel Lawyer of DDLSA spoke about the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO). According to her, the POCSO Act was enacted in 2015 to protect children against sexual offences. She stated that these days the children are not safe and we come across numerous child molestation, child abuse and child rape cases. She also said that children especially students must be well aware of the difference between good and bad touches and also they must be aware of their rights and in case of any offence must immediately approach the DDLSA or CJM for free and fair redressal of their grievances.
Another Panel Lawyer, Mrs. Abeni gave a brief talk on Human and Child Trafficking. She dwelt on the importance of finding out the genuineness of companies coming for recruiting young people for various job opportunities in mainland India. She also stressed the need to find out whether these companies are registered or not. Otherwise she warned that young people may land up in grave dangers and problems.
The main speaker of the seminar, the CJM of Dimapur, Mr. Ajongba Imchen underscored the importance of the people especially the students to be aware of both their rights as well as duties. He said that we can prosper only when we adhere to the provisions of the Indian Constitution. Speaking about the Lokpal (Anti-Corruption) Bill in length, the CJM said that in Sweden the Lokpal is known as Ombudsman which was enacted as an Act way back in 1809 whereas in India it took nearly 50 years for the Lokpal Bill to become an Act when it was passed in 2013 due to the efforts of Shri Anna Hazare. According to him in the individual states, including Nagaland, the Lokpal is known as Lokayukta which is yet to become an Act in our state. The CJM further encouraged the students and common people to come forward with their grievances directly to the CJM or the DDLSA. Further he stated that the DDLSA provide free and fast legal services to people from the marginalized category especially people whose annual income is less than 1 Lakh Rupees. He also announced the setting up of a Legal Literary Club in LFHSS where around 30 to 50 students will be members headed by one teacher. According to him only five Colleges and Schools of Dimapur including LFHSS were identified for setting up the Legal Literary Club. He further said that two Panel Lawyers from DDLSA will be attached to the Club and all logistical support will be provided by the DDLSA.
The CJM’s address was followed by interaction with the students and teachers who asked some valuable questions related to law and legalities. The seminar came to an end with the vote of thanks by the Coordinator, Mr. Zakir Hussain followed by refreshments for the students and teachers provided by the DDLSA.
