The Hindu : National : ``High Court can suggest shifting of lower courts''

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, May 20, 2006

National

National

``High Court can suggest shifting of lower courts''

Legal Correspondent

New Delhi: The High Court is vested with powers to make recommendations for shifting subordinate courts as it has administrative control over them, the Supreme Court has held.

A Bench consisting of Justices S.B. Sinha and P.K. Balsubramanyan said the power to shift a court involved the question of jurisdiction. "The interest of litigants should be uppermost in the mind of the High Court while making such a recommendation [for shifting a court]."

Article 235 of the Constitution conferred on the High Court a supervisory jurisdiction over all subordinate courts. It could be exercised in judicial as well as administrative matters.

The Bench was dealing an appeal against a Kerala High Court judgment, which rejected a petition against shifting a family court from Manjeri to Malappuram.

Dismissing the appeal by M.P. Gangadharan, the Bench pointed out that the State Government had agreed with the High Court's suggestion for shifting the family court.

If, according to the High Court, the existing building was not suitable to meet the requirements of litigants and hence the decision to shift the court to a better place, it could not be faulted. The proposed site was just 12 km from the existing building.

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