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Business News : The common man, be it a villager in Tamil Nadu or a mobile repairman in Goa, must be made aware of his rights when it comes to telecommunications, Bombay High Court Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyay remarked on Saturday.
He suggested that the Bar Association should take the initiative so that the grievances of the general public can be raised before the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT). Justice Upadhyay was speaking at a seminar on 'Mechanisms for resolution of disputes in telecom and broadcasting and cyber sectors' in North Goa. Bombay High Court judges Justice Nitin Jamdar, Justice MS Karnik and Justice Navin Chawla were also present on the occasion.

"As far as deciding the issues that come before the tribunals are concerned, there are laws and rules for that. Since the nature of disputes is still in its infancy, the tribunals are also in their infancy and are constantly evolving," he said.

Justice Upadhyay said that since the lawyers and members of the TDSAT are well acquainted with the rules, laws and legal nuances of the field, they should guide the people as per the age-old principles of dispensation of justice - equality, fairness and good faith.

"Although this role has now been forgotten in the court system, I would still like to emphasise that tribunal members must follow these basic principles of dispensation of justice," he said.

Justice Upadhyay said the disputes coming up for adjudication before TDSAT relate to a large number of matters and they could affect anyone sitting in a village in Tamil Nadu or running a mobile repair shop in Goa.
He said, "How to make a mobile repairer aware of his rights? I would request the Telecom Bar Association that apart from discussing the legal aspects before the TDSAT, perhaps you should go and discuss this in the Bar Associations in different parts of the country so that they can also make themselves aware of the remedies available to them (public) under this law."

Justice Upadhyay said that even a common man running a mobile phone repair shop can fight for his rights on these forums, about which he must be informed and some kind of awareness program should be run in this direction by the Bar Associations.

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