Karnataka   

Thousands turn up for inauguration of High Court Circuit Bench

DHARWAD: Thousands of people from various districts of North Karnataka turned up for the inauguration of the Circuit Bench of the High Court of Karnataka at the Water and Land Management Institute near here on Friday.

When Chief Justice of India K.G. Balakrishnan unveiled the stone plaque to formally mark the inauguration of the Bench, the large pandal erected for the programme was brimming with enthusiastic people.

Hundreds of people, accompanied by folk artistes, took out a colourful procession from Dharwad to the venue, around 10 km from the city.

Mr. Balakrishnan said: “The court should transform its jurisprudence into more people-friendly approach and the court must begin to pay more attention to the emerging dimensions of the socio-economic rights, including the responsibilities of transnational corporations and agencies as well as relationship between different branches of law.”

The court’s legitimacy depended to a large extent on its ability to offer support to social movements, which were primarily focussed on the realisation of economic and social rights at a time of economic liberalisation, he said. Mr. Balakrishnan said: “The Circuit Bench of High Court of Karnataka should certainly help the people of this locality in not increasing the litigation but to lessen their burdens in day-to-day life and make their lives more worthy of living.”

He called upon the High Court lawyers to maintain the dignity of the profession and high principles of ethics.

Supreme Court Judge R.V. Raveendran said the objectives of setting up a Circuit Bench would be fulfilled only when the litigant public got speedy justice. He called upon the lawyers to consider a litigant as person seeking relief and help him get relief.

Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa appealed to the Chief Justice of the High Court of Karnataka to convert the Circuit Bench into a full Bench at the earliest. Responding to the plea of president of Dharwad Bar Association, he said the 100-acre land adjacent to the Circuit Bench building would be allotted to lawyers for building houses.

The former Chief Minister N. Dharam Singh stressed the need to implement the Nanjundappa Committee Report and release of additional grants for development of the backward areas.

Chief Justice of High Court of Karnataka Cyriac Joseph acknowledged the assistance and cooperation extended by the State Government in establishing the Circuit Bench and requested the State Government to build lawyers’ chambers for the advocates practising at the Bench.

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