Karnataka High Court forms 3-judge panel to assess feasibility of more HC benches

The Karnataka High Court on Tuesday constituted a three-member committee to examine the feasibility of establishing circuit or permanent benches of High Court at Mangaluru, Udupi, Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru, Kodagu-Madikeri, Hassan, Davanagere and Uttara Kannada.

The committee was constituted by the Chief Justice through a notification dated September 29.

The three-member panel comprises Justice Anu Sivaraman, Justice SG Pandit and Justice Mohammad Nawaz.

The notification states that the committee has been constituted to verify the feasibility of establishing a High Court circuit bench/permanent bench in the identified regions.

The committee has also been directed to consult all stakeholders before submitting its report to the High Court on the feasibility of establishing such benches.

The notification, issued by Registrar General M Chandrashekar Reddy, states that the committee will function with immediate effect.

The issue assumes significance since Karnataka currently has the principal seat at Bengaluru and benches at Dharwad and Kalaburagi.

The proposal for an additional bench at Mangaluru had earlier triggered a debate within the legal fraternity, with proponents citing the need to improve access to justice for litigants from distant parts of the State.

On May 13, former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had written to Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru seeking consideration of the proposal for establishing a circuit bench at Mangaluru and assuring the State government's cooperation in implementing the proposal.

The State government had also identified the old Deputy Commissioner's office in Mangaluru as potential infrastructure for the proposed bench. The May proposal stated that around 50,000 square feet of space could be repurposed for court operations and also said that residential accommodation for judges have been identified.

The proposal, however, faced opposition from the Advocates' Association Bengaluru (AAB).

In a memorandum dated May 18 addressed to Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru, the AAB opposed the proposed Mangaluru bench and contended that any decision taken without stakeholder consultation and an empirical or statistical study on the necessity of a new bench would be premature.

The AAB had argued that a comprehensive study should examine factors including case pendency, accessibility, infrastructure requirements and the broader administrative implications of establishing another bench.

The association had also urged the Chief Justice not to take a decision without consulting affected stakeholders, including Bar associations in Bengaluru, Madikeri, Hassan, Chikkamagaluru, Shivamogga and Karwar.

[Read Notification]