9 November – National Legal Services Day observed across the country

9 November 2026 · English Important Days

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Current affairs of 9 November 2026 (Shanmugam IAS Academy) – explained for UPSC, TNPSC and other competitive exams

News

9 November, the day the Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987 came into force, is observed every year as National Legal Services Day. On 9 November 2026 the National Legal Services Authority (NALSA) and the State, District and Taluk Legal Services Authorities held legal-aid awareness programmes across the country. The Act was passed in 1987 but came into force only on 9 November 1995. It aims to give free and competent legal services to weaker sections – women, children, SC/ST members, persons in custody, low-income people and others – and to settle disputes amicably through Lok Adalats. The Chief Justice of India is NALSA's Patron-in-Chief; the present CJI is Surya Kant. Article 39A of the Constitution directs the State to promote justice on the basis of equal opportunity and provide free legal aid.

Key facts for the exam

Background

• History: in the 1970s, committees headed by Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer and Justice P.N. Bhagwati recommended free legal aid. The 42nd Amendment (1976) added Article 39A as a Directive Principle. In 1980 the Committee for Implementing Legal Aid Schemes (CILAS) was set up under Justice Bhagwati. The Act was passed in 1987 and, after a 1994 amendment, came into force on 9 November 1995.
• Case law: in M.H. Hoskot v. State of Maharashtra (1978) the Supreme Court held free legal aid for an appeal to be part of Article 21. In Hussainara Khatoon v. State of Bihar (1979), on undertrials jailed for years without trial, it declared speedy trial and free legal aid to be fundamental rights under Article 21.
• Structure: a three-tier set-up – NALSA nationally (Sec 3), the Supreme Court Legal Services Committee (Sec 3A), SLSAs in States (Sec 6), DLSAs in districts (Sec 9) and Taluk Legal Services Committees. Section 12 lists those entitled to free legal services.
• Lok Adalats: the first Lok Adalat camp was held in Gujarat in 1982. No court fee is charged, and fees already paid are refunded. Under Section 21 the award is deemed a civil-court decree, final and not appealable in any court. The 2002 amendment (Chapter VI-A) created Permanent Lok Adalats for disputes over public utility services – transport, postal, telephone, power, water, hospitals and the like – which can be approached even before a case is filed.

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Sources: NALSA; India Code – Legal Services Authorities Act, 1987; LiveLaw, 3 Nov 2026. Compiled by Shanmugam IAS Academy.

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