GAIBANDHA, April 28, 2024 (BSS)-National Legal Aid Day-2024 was celebrated in the district as elsewhere in the country today with a view to ensuring  the rule of law, basic human rights, social equality, freedom and justice for all.

This year’s theme of the day is “Smart Legal Aid, Smart Desh, Bangabandhur Bangladesh”.

Marking the day, District Legal Aid Committee and district judgeship jointly chalked out the elaborate programmes in cooperation with FRIENDSHIP, an international voluntary organization founded by eminent female personality Runa Khan.

In the morning around 10 am, a colorful rally was brought out from the premises of the district judge court here and ended at the same venue after parading the main roads of the town.

A discussion was also held with District and Session Judge and Chairperson of the District Legal aid Committee Md. Abul Mansur Miah in the chair.

Additional District and Session Judge Mantasir Ahmed, Joint District and Session Judge Sultan Mahmud, Additional District Magistrate (ADM) Mashiur Rahman, President of District Bar Association Adv. Faruk Ahmed Prince, General Secretary Adv. G S Alamgir, and District Coordinator of FRIENDSHIP Younus Ali, addressed the function, among others.

The speakers in their speeches said the government led by Prime Minister has been working relentlessly and tirelessly to establish the rule of law and human rights in the country.

District and Session Judge Md. Abul Mansur Miah in his speech said Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman had dreamt of building a democratic and prosperous country, which would be free from all sorts of discrimination and established a strong judiciary system by enacting the Constitution in 1972.

.The 'Legal Aid Act, 2000' has been enacted to provide legal aid to litigants who are financially indigent, and unable to obtain justice due to various socio-economic reasons, he added.

He also urged the poor and the distressed men of the society to receive the legal aid services free of cost to file cases with the courts and get fair justice from the institutional courts without any hassle.

ADM Mashiur Rahman said the district legal aid committee formed by the government has been playing significant role for few years last in ensuring getting fair justice of the distressed people of the district.

The ADM also urged the concerned to be serious to make the legal aid services more popular to the people of grass root level in the district.

Besides, a number of stalls had also been set up on court premises premises at the arrangement of the NGOs, which are working legal aid related issues at the remote areas including hard to reach char areas of the district, said regional manager of the FRIENDSHIP Nazmul Hossain.

A large number of judges, lawyers, social workers, NGO activists, public representatives and journalists attended the programmes.