Separate HC for western UP: Lawyers’ demand goes unheard even this election

Lawyers in the Ghaziabad and Gautam Budh Nagar constituencies feel the demand has been sidelined by all parties.

Ghaziabad Bar Association’s vice president Ravindra Kumar says parties ignore the inconvenience to people who have to travel to the Allahabad High Court for their cases.

Jitendra Singh Bana,former convenor of the High Court Branch Sangharsh Samiti,Meerut,says the distance deters many from contesting lower courts’ decisions in HC.

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“To appeal against a district court order,one must go to Allahabad. The inconvenience and expenses of travel and stay deters people to file appeals,” Bana says.

The demand for a High Court for western UP districts goes back to 1955. “Sampurnanandji (UP chief minister from 1954 to 1960) had agreed to our demand. Since then,the state has seen 17 chief ministers,but no one has done anything,” Bana adds.

The lawyers want the separate High Court for the 18 districts in western UP,including Gautam Budh Nagar,Meerut,Ghaziabad,Muzaffarnagar,Saharanpur,Bhagpat,Bijnour and Bulandshahr.

But now,they say,there’s not much hope. “The movement was strong in the ’90s when lawyers staged dharnas and called strikes. Now,the demand is fading away as there is no political backing,” P N Singh,senior advocate in Noida district court,says.