The post of Judicial Magistrate at the Munsiff Court in Jammu and Kashmir's Gool has been lying vacant for more than one year.

Recently, the Judicial Magistrate at Ramban was given the additional charge of Gool but he sits sits only twice a week (Thursdays and Fridays) in Gool Munsiff Court and the Court continues to remain non-functional for rest of the days leaving litigants and lawyers in the lurch.

A reply to an application under the Right to Information Act (RTI Act) revealed that there are 88 vacant posts of judicial magistrates as against the sanctioned posts of 245 in district and subordinate courts across the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir.

The RTI reply further said that 752 cases are pending for disposal in Munsiff Court at Gool.

The Court also has sanctioned posts for head assistant, steno typist, senior assistant, junior assistant, process servers.

Speaking to Bar & Bench, the president of District Bar Association of Ramban, Asif Ronyal said that lawyers and litigants in Gool area are suffering due to lack of a permanent Judicial Magistrate in Gool.

He further said that many representations were submitted to higher authorities for filling up the post but to no avail.

Advocate Mumtaz told Bar & Bench that a permanent Judicial Magistrate is very important for Gool because it is approximately 50-60 kilometers from the District Court at Ramban.

"People are suffering a lot due to the vacant post of the Judicial Magistrate in the Gool for more than a year. Giving additional charge to the Judicial Magistrate at Ramban has not helped and is only causing difficulty to people at both Gool and Ramban since the Ramban Judicial Magistrate sits at Gool for two days and at Ramban for the remaining days," she said.

Mohammad Sharief, a local resident told Bar & Bench that even attesting an affidavit is not possible at Gool due to lack of a permanent judicial magistrate.

One has to travel 50 to 60 kilometers to the District Court at Ramban to get the same done, Sharief said.