Odisha govt urges Centre to increase number of HC judges

Odisha government today urged the Centre to enhance the approved strength of High Court judges from existing 22 to 27, official sources said.
Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik today sent a letter to Union Law Minister Kapil Sibal justifying the government's demand and said pendency of cases in the High Court compared to 2003 has increased substantially.
"The state government is therefore of the view that it is time the approved strength is increased to 27 in line with the earlier proposal of Justice S Barman Roy," the letter said.
Patnaik stated that the strength of permanent judges should be increased to 17 and that of Additional Judges to 10, taking the total number to 27.

The number of cases pending before the High Court has gone up to 3.5 lakh. Besides, the number of cases instituted everyday has also increased substantially.
Patnaik agreed that the state government would provide the required financial and staff support to sustain the increased strength and said, "The Acting Chief Justice of Orissa High Court has also agreed to the proposal.