Government is in favour of setting up High Court Bench in Mangaluru: MLC

Welcoming Karnataka High Court Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru forming a three-judge committee to study the feasibility of setting up of a High Bench in Mangaluru and other places, Ivan D’Souza, MLC, said on Tuesday (September 29) that the State government is in favour of setting up the Bench in Mangaluru.

In a statement, Mr. D’Souza, who heads the Karavali High Court Bench Horata Samiti, said that former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah had written a letter to the Karnataka Chief Justice expressing the government’s support for establishing the High Court Bench in Mangaluru. Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar is also in favour of forming a High Court Bench in Mangaluru.

The three-member committee of High Court judges will hold consultations with litigants, advocates and other stakeholders about districts that could come under the Mangaluru High Court Bench and submit the report. The samiti will take further steps to fulfil the demand of forming the Bench in Mangaluru, Mr. D’Souza said.

Mangaluru Bar Association president Jagadish Shenava also welcomed the decision and said it is a significant development for the region, which has been fighting for the cause for several years. Having the High Court Bench in Mangaluru will greatly reduce the time and the expense that litigants from coastal Karnataka and adjoining areas incurred in getting justice. The association will continue its fight for the fulfilment of the demand, he stated.