Amid protests by the Gauhati High Court Bar Association (GHCBA) over the proposed relocation of the High Court, the Chief Justice of India, Justice Surya Kant, laid the foundation stone for the Assam government’s proposed “integrated judicial complex” at North Guwahati on Sunday and issued an appeal to the opposing bar council members, suggesting they maybe “ill-informed”.
The Gauhati High Court is currently located in the heart of the city, and the site of the proposed relocation is Rangmahal in North Guwahati, located across the Brahmaputra River. The Gauahti High Court Bar Association has been opposing this relocation, citing its distance, saying that it would be hard to access for both lawyers and members of the public. Earlier this week, the Bar association announced a boycott of the foundation stone-laying ceremony.
Justice Surya Kant presided over the ceremony, where a large number of other guests were present, including Justices Vijay Bishnoi, N Kotiswar Singh, Sandeep Mehta and Ujjal Bhuyan of the Supreme Court; Union Minister of State of Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal; Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma; and the Chief Justice and other judges of the Gauhati High Court.
According to Chief Minister Sarma, the proposed integrated judicial complex will initially house 31 courtrooms, 300 chambers for advocates, a 2,000-seater capacity Bar library, and other facilities. He also said that the travel time to reach the site would be reduced after the inauguration in February of a bridge over the Brahmaputra connecting Guwahati to North Guwahati.
The CJI said, “I believe the concept of an integrated court complex echoes a mature, contemporary and futuristic approach to how courts must serve… Therefore, integration is not just an architectural concept; it is about how the system works as a whole. The challenge often begins not in the courtroom, but in simply how to get there. I have seen that it is exhausting when litigants are required to move to courts across the city from the High Court, district courts, then to the legal aid offices situated somewhere else. The burden of travel and navigation drains the energy that would otherwise be spent on presenting their case.”
“I am therefore personally so delighted that this integrated judicial court complex will come into change that experience for the consumer of justice by bringing together the High Court, the district judiciary of Kamrup (Metro) and all essential services in a single accessible location,” said Justice Kant.
Referring to the opposition by the bar association, he said, “I was initially surprised when it was brought to my notice that some of the bar association members are opposing this infrastructure development. I believe that either they are ill-informed, or unfortunately, they are not realising the need and the necessity for young members of the bar and those who are in queue to join the profession.”
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“I hope and still firmly believe that each one of them will realise that personal vested interests — only because you might be having a good office near your complex — should not be valid or justified grounds to hamper the development of a modern-day infrastructure which has a completely futuristic approach. In this backdrop, I earnestly appeal to the state government and the Chief Justice of the High Court to ensure that every young lawyer, regardless of socio-economic background or professional seniority, be accommodated and provided adequate space to practise,” the CJI said.
According to the state government, the Integrated Judicial Court Complex is to be built over 148 bighas of land at an estimated project cost of Rs 1,700 crore, and will house the High Court building, High Court Advocates’ Building, High Court Office Building, the courts of Kamrup and Kamrup Metropolitan districts, parking facilities and other allied infrastructure.
