Conflict and Compromise: The Politics of Lok Adalats in Varanasi District

Researchers use a variety of approaches in analyzing dispute processing outside of adversarial court proceedings. Some emphasize disputant decisionmaking, while others, who generally take a more critical view of these alternatives, approach dispute processing alternatives from the perspective of the state and its interests. In this article I use a third approach which focuses on the political behavior of actors involved in the organization, administration, and staffing of these alternative mechanisms. The approach is applied to a relatively new alternative to adjudication in the courts in India, the lok adalat.