Push for Permanent Gauhati High Court Bench in Barak Valley Gains Momentum

Renewed Efforts for a Permanent High Court Bench

Silchar, April 25: The longstanding call for a permanent bench of the Gauhati High Court in Barak Valley has gained fresh momentum, following a formal memorandum submitted to the Chief Secretary of Assam by the High Court Bench Demand Implementation Committee, Cachar District Unit.

This memorandum was submitted through the Joint Secretary at the Barak Valley Secretariat in Srikona, marking a significant step as the first formal request made under the newly established administrative framework.

Observers view this initiative as a crucial advancement in transforming a decades-old demand into a structured policy dialogue.

In their memorandum, the committee urged the State Government to take prompt and definitive actions to establish a permanent High Court bench at an appropriate site in Barak Valley.

The committee highlighted the ongoing difficulties faced by litigants, who currently must travel nearly 400 kilometers to reach the High Court in Guwahati.

Advocate Dhurba Kumar Saha, the committee's president, pointed out that this issue has been a longstanding concern for local residents.

“This demand is not new. The people of Barak Valley and surrounding areas have endured hardships for decades due to the lack of a nearby High Court bench,” he stated. He emphasized that the long journey imposes financial strains, delays legal processes, and causes significant inconvenience, particularly for senior citizens, women, and those from economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

Advocate Dharmananda Deb, an executive member of the committee, underscored the constitutional aspect of the demand, asserting that access to justice is a fundamental right.

“Access to justice is a vital component of Article 21 of the Constitution. The decentralization of judicial institutions is crucial to ensure that justice is delivered effectively to the populace,” he remarked.

The memorandum also included statistics to highlight the urgency of the situation, noting that approximately 5,000 to 6,000 cases are filed each year from Barak Valley and nearby districts like Dima Hasao, which constitutes nearly 40 percent of the total caseload of the Gauhati High Court.

The committee contended that establishing a local bench would significantly alleviate the burden on litigants and enhance judicial efficiency.

To bolster their argument, the committee referenced examples from other northeastern states where separate benches or principal seats have been created to tackle similar geographical and logistical issues.

They also cited provisions from Section 51 of the States Reorganisation Act, 1956, which grants authority for the establishment of permanent benches within a state.

Describing the demand as both “long-overdue and warranted,” the committee has called on the State Government to respond within a reasonable timeframe.