Editorial
Alternative dispute resolution
Bid to recover large amount of money from loan defaulters
PARLIAMENT has passed the alternative dispute resolution (ADR) bill to introduce a system to resolve many cases out of court. Under the system, the court will ask both parties to settle disputes through ADR within 60 days after the order has been issued. However, the court may extend the time by another 30 days, if both parties request. It is expected that the system would help recover thousands of crores of taka now stuck in lengthy court process since 1989.
According to information provided by the parliamentary standing committee on the law ministry, a total of 37,496 cases worth Tk. 25,254 crore are pending with the Artha Rin Adalat. The parliamentary standing committee's report said a total of 104,832 cases were filed with the money loan court between 1989 and 2009, while the amount claimed by different banks was Tk 29,454 crore. But it is not so encouraging to learn that so far, 67,336 cases have been settled but the amount of money recovered was only Tk 4,200 crore.
We understand that the recommendations for ADR came following careful inspection of the money loan court amendment bill placed in parliament on February 24 last year, which got a quick nod from the Ministry of Law, Justice and Parliamentary Affairs. It has been passed by Parliament on 23 March this year. But it remains to be said that passing a bill is not enough, that again to recover money, because it has to do with the culture of defaulting loans in this country. It would therefore require proper enforcement of law and a transparent mechanism to make the recovery process effective and at the same time unquestionable.
The amount of unrecovered money as given in the report in this daily is undoubtedly staggering. The money belongs to the public, therefore, it should be recovered as soon as possible so that it can be used to undertake public welfare projects. Banks should also introduce revised rules and regulations to discourage loan default culture among the future borrowers.
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