Section 20:
Courts competent to try offences.
(1) The courts competent to try offences under this Act shall
be the following,—
(a) in rural areas to which the Delhi Panchayat Raj Act, 1954 (Delhi Act III of 1955) extends, the
Panchayati Adalat, constituted under section 50 of that Act, within whose jurisdiction the person
committing the offence resides;
(b) in other areas, the court of a magistrate having jurisdiction.
(2) Any offence triable by the Panchayati Adalat shall be tried in the manner provided for the trial of
criminal cases by the Delhi Panchayat Raj Act, 1954 (Delhi Act III of 1955), and any offence triable by a
magistrate shall be tried in a summary way.