HC benches to open in July

Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan will inaugurate the circuit bench at Dharwad on July 4 and in Gulbarga on July 5.

Justice S R Bannurmath of Karnataka High Court who along with justices K Shridhar Rao, Deepak Varma and A S Pachhapure inspected the buildings for the circuit bench in Dharwad on Saturday said the judicial work at both the circuit benches would commence from July 7.

Expressing satisfaction over the work carried out so far, justice Bannurmath said five court halls to accommodate work by five judges were ready. He said all pending cases arising from Dharwad, Belgaum, Haveri, Gadag, Uttara Kannada, Bagalkot, Bellary and Koppal will be transferred to Dharwad bench while all fresh cases except PIL and company-related cases from these districts will be filed and decided at Dharwad from July 7. Cases pertaining to Bijapur, Bidar, Gulbarga and Raichur will be dealt with at Gulbarga bench. Justices Bannurmath, Varma, Shridhar Rao and Pacchapure went round the various buildings under construction and offered suggestions.

The state has released Rs 75 crore to create necessary infrastructure for the two benches. An additional Rs 35 crore for Dharwad bench would be released soon, according to PWD minister C M Udasi. Meanwhile, the ministerial staff at the high court in Bangalore are said to have expressed their unwillingness to work in Dharwad and Gulbarga citing the lack of amenities.

Highly-placed sources said the staff would be required to work at Dharwad and Gulbarga for a short period till fresh recruitments for the circuit benches are made. "Once the new recruits come, those from Bangalore will go back," the source revealed.