Bangalore Turf Club land will be allocated for new High Court building: State tells Karnataka High Court

The Karnataka government on Monday informed the High Court that it will soon pass a resolution allocating land presently occupied by the Bangalore Turf Club for the construction of a new High Court building [Sharan Desai MArch USA v The Registrar General & Anr].

The submission was made before a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice KS Hemalekha by Advocate General Shashi Kiran Shetty.

The Court was hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) petition filed by Sharan Desai, seeking a direction to the State government to allot at least 30 acres of land in Bengaluru for a modern High Court complex.

In an earlier hearing of the matter, the Bench had orally observed that any new High Court complex should be planned to meet the judiciary's requirements for at least the next 30 to 50 years, underscoring the need for long-term infrastructure planning.

The Court yesterday accepted the Advocate General's request to defer further hearing in the matter by a month to enable the State to place the relevant details of the steps it is taking on record. The case is listed for hearing next on August 28.

The statement made by the government yesterday comes against the backdrop of a decision taken by it earlier this year to relocate horse racing activities from the existing Bangalore Turf Club premises.

In February, the Karnataka Cabinet approved the lease of 110 acres and 20 guntas at the Kunigal Stud Farm near Tumakuru to the Bangalore Turf Club for 29 years to facilitate the shift.

However, that decision for the relocation of horse racing activities has been challenged before the High Court. Urban conservationist Vijay Nishanth has questioned the proposed relocation, contending that the government's order was issued without complying with the Environment Impact Assessment Notification, 2006.

The High Court has already issued notice in that petition and sought the State government's response.

The proposal to relocate the High Court to a new complex is not new. On October 26 last year, Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, then serving as Deputy Chief Minister, had announced during a citizen outreach programme at Cubbon Park that the government was exploring the possibility of shifting the High Court to a larger campus.