The Chief Justice of the High Court of Karnataka on Tuesday constituted a high-level committee comprising three judges to examine the feasibility of establishing a Circuit Bench/Permanent Bench of the court in the State’s coastal or Malnad region.

According to an official notification issued by the High Court’s Registrar General, the committee will consist of Justices Anu Sivaraman, S.G. Pandit, and Mohammad Nawaz.

Panel’s mandate

The committee will “verify the feasibility of establishment of High Court Circuit Bench/Permanent Bench at Mangaluru/Udupi (Coastal Karnataka region)/Shivamogga/Chikkamagaluru/Kodagu-Madikeri/Hassan/Davanagere/Uttara Kannada districts after consulting all the stakeholders and submit a report”, the notification stated.

The demand for a permanent Bench in the coastal region has been a major political and legal talking point for years led by the Mangaluru Bar Association and the Coastal High Court Bench Agitation Committee.

The advocates and political leaders from the coastal districts repeatedly citing the logistical challenges and expenses involved in travelling to Bengaluru for legal proceedings before the High Court as a reason for a Bench at their doorstep.

Recently, it was reported that the authorities have indicated that a 50,000 sq. ft. facility at the old Deputy Commissioner’s office in Mnagaluru is available to house the Circuit Bench.

Opposition

However, the Advocates’ Association, Bengaluru, formally opposed the move for a Bench in the coastal region while terming it as “premature” and lacking an empirical basis. The AAB claimed that another Bench, in addition to the existing permanent Benches at Dharwad and Kalaburagi, would dilute the High Court’s institutional unity and warned that fragmenting the High Court could harm consistency in judicial administration.