Members of the Jagdalpur Bar Association have criticised the Bilaspur Bar Association for opposing the demand of the people of Bastar for setting up of a Bench of High Court at Jagdalpur.
Alleging that the demand for establishing a bench of High Court and Revenue Board is not new, the association members said that on this issue Jagdalpur Bar Association had observed two months long agitation after which accepting the genuineness of the demand, the State Government had assured that whenever be the expansion of the state High Court the State Government will give priority to Jagdalpur.
Also when the union law Minister Virappa Moiley asked the State Government to send proposal for the extension of the High Court the Chief Minister himself had announced for sending the same but unfortunately Bar Association of Bilaspur is opposing the demand which is unacceptable to lawyers of Bastar, JBA said.
Office bearers of the Jagdalpur Bar Association claimed that as per Constitutional norms, establishment of an HC Bench was must at a place 350 kilometres away from the state High Court and in the case of Jagdalpur it is much more essential given the tense situation of Bastar. Also, opposition to HC Bench at Jagdalpur by Bilaspur Bar Association on the ground that there was small number of litigation in Bastar is untenable as Bastar witnesses maximum number of crimes in the country, testimony of which is the fact that half of the cases pending in Bilaspur High Court belonged to Bastar.
The Association members have urged the state government to set up a Bench of the state High Court at Jagdalpur seeing the situation of Bastar as also to fulfil its own promises adhering to the norms laid for establishment of the Bench, the Association demanded.