Legal systems are complicated, and it is not unheard of for the uneducated to be taken advantage of by someone with a more intricate understanding of their local rule of law. A group of paralegals working out of the Indian state of Madhya Pradesh, have taken steps to combat this by offering their expertise to the underprivileged people of their state.
The paralegals in question are employed by the Madhya Pradesh State Legal Services Authority (MPSLSA) and their current campaign is not the MPSLSA’s first. In the past, they have been responsible for sweeping legal awareness campaigns in an effort to combat a variety of welfare schemes and con artists that preyed specifically on the state’s underprivileged people.
Now, these paralegals have taken things a step further. Alongside attempting to educate the public and prevent fraud from happening, paralegals have undertaken the effort of filing and drafting complaints for victims. This takes a burden off of the victim’s shoulders while also helping to make sure reports are filed accurately and to the letter of the law.
The state paralegals also recently hosted a camp for the residents of the Chor Barhata Village in Madhya Pradesh. Nearly 3,500 residents attended, and all received detailed education on welfare schemes and on the laws in place to protect them from criminals. The camp also handed out scholarships to exceptional students and distributed medical equipment to the handicapped.
The success of the camp has led the MPSLSA to develop standardized procedures for holding similar camps in the future. They believe that districts facing potential epidemics of welfare schemes could be aided by the education and aid being provided by state paralegals. Hopefully, camps in the future will be able to stem the tide of legal abuse and equip the people of Madhya Pradesh to better understand their legal rights.
