Guwahati: A senior advocate based in Assam’s Silchar has moved top constitutional authorities, seeking the setting up of a Circuit Bench or a Permanent Bench of the Gauhati High Court in Assam’s Barak Valley to ease access to justice for people of the region.
Sources said advocate Dharmananda Deb submitted a seven-page representation by post on January 12 to the Assam Chief Minister, Union Law and Justice Minister, Chief Justice of India, Chief Justice of the Gauhati High Court, Assam Governor and the Cabinet Minister in charge of the Barak Valley Development Department.
In his petition, Deb pointed out that litigants from the Barak Valley must travel nearly 350 km to Guwahati, where the principal seat of the Gauhati High Court is located. He said the long distance, coupled with frequent disruption of road and rail connectivity due to floods and landslides during the monsoon, makes access to the court extremely difficult, especially for the elderly, the sick and economically weaker sections.
The memorandum said these constraints deter residents from approaching the High Court for writ petitions, public interest litigations and urgent constitutional relief, thereby undermining their rights guaranteed under Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution.
The advocate noted that the High Court administration had earlier rejected similar proposals in 2014 and 2015. However, he argued that the situation has changed significantly over the past decade, with population growth in the Barak Valley and a marked increase in the number and complexity of legal cases.
Referring to recent administrative measures such as the establishment of a Mini Secretariat and the creation of the Barak Valley Development Department, Deb said these steps indicate growing decentralisation, yet the absence of a High Court bench in the region continues to impede access to justice.
He contended that establishing a Circuit Bench or a Permanent Bench in the Barak Valley would substantially reduce hardship for litigants, speed up case disposal and ease the caseload pressure on the Guwahati bench. The proposal, he added, would also advance the constitutional mandate of Article 39A, which guarantees equal access to justice.