Karnataka High Court
| High Court of Karnataka | |
|---|---|
| ಕರ್ನಾಟಕ ಉಚ್ಚ ನ್ಯಾಯಾಲಯ | |
 Emblem of the court | |
| Established | 1884 |
| Jurisdiction | Karnataka |
| Location | Principal bench (main bench) Additional benches
|
| Coordinates | 12°58′40″N 77°35′33″E / 12.9779°N 77.5926°ECoordinates: 12°58′40″N 77°35′33″E / 12.9779°N 77.5926°E |
| Composition method | Presidential appointment on advice of the Chief Justice of India and the Governor of Karnataka. |
| Authorized by | Constitution of India |
| Judge term length | Mandatory retirement at age 62 |
| Number of positions | 62 |
| Language | Kannada, English |
| Website | karnatakajudiciary.kar.nic.in |
| Chief Justice | |
| Currently | Ritu Raj Awasthi |
| Since | 11 October 2021 |
The High Court of Karnataka (IAST: Karnātaka Uchha Nyāyālaya, commonly called the Karnataka High Court) is the High Court of the Indian state of Karnataka and thus its highest judicial authority. The court's principal bench is located in Bangalore, the capital city of Karnataka, with additional benches in Hubli-Dharwad and Gulbarga. It was previously called the High Court of Mysore. In Bangalore, the High Court functions out of a red-painted brick building known as the Attara Kacheri, located opposite the Vidhana Soudha, the seat of the legislature of Karnataka.
Composition[edit]
The High Court is composed of the Chief Justice of Karnataka and other judges. Judges are appointed by the President of India.[1] As of February 2022, there are 45 judges in the High Court,[2] out of a sanctioned maximum strength of 62.[3] Ritu Raj Awasthi has been the Chief Justice since October 11, 2021.
Powers and jurisdiction[edit]
The High Court is the highest judicial authority within the State of Karnataka. It has superintendence over all courts and tribunals, such as district courts, operating within Karnataka, except those of the armed forces.[4][5] Appeals against judgements of lower courts, such as district-level civil and sessions courts, are heard in the High Court. Appeals against judgements of the High Court are heard by the Supreme Court of India.
The High Court is a court of record and can prosecute for contempt of itself.[6]
The Karnataka High court has two permanent benches at Dharwad and Kalaburagi ( Gulbarga then). The permanent Karnataka high court bench at Dharwad became operational on 24 August 2013 and Gulbarga on 31 August 2013.[7] Before operational of permanent high court benches, Dharwad and Kalaburagi had circuit benches of Karnataka High Court from the year 2008. Dharwad bench of Karnataka High Court was inaugurated by then Chief Justice of India K.G.Balakrishnan on 4 July 2008 and became operational from 7 July 2008 A.D.[8]
Premises[edit]
The High Court's principal bench is located in Bangalore, in a building called the Attara Kacheri. It is a wide two-storied building of stone and brick, painted red, in the neoclassical style of architecture. It was constructed between 1864 and 1868.[9]
There was a proposal to demolish this building in the year 1982.[10] A public interest litigation (PIL) was filed in the High Court pleading to stop the demolition. This was the first PIL to be filed in the court, and the case was heard in the same building that was supposed to be demolished.[11] The petition was struck down by the High Court, but the proposal to demolish the building was dropped in 1985 when the Supreme Court asked the state government to reconsider demolition.
Notable judges[edit]
Four judges of the court, E. S. Venkataramiah, M. N. Venkatachaliah, S. Rajendra Babu and H.L. Dattu, went on to become Chief Justices of India[12] and others including Kalmanje Jagannatha Shetty, N. Venkatachala, R. V. Raveendran, Shivaraj Patil, Venkate Gopala Gowda, Mohan Shantanagoudar, S. Abdul Nazeer, A. S. Oka and B. V. Nagarathna were appointed as judges in the Supreme Court of India.[13]
Chief Justices[edit]
P Mahadevayya, M Sadasivayya, Nittoor Srinivasa Rau, Sam Piroj Bharucha and G. T. Nanavati were some notable Chief Justices who presided over this court.
List of former Chief Justices[edit]
- High Court of Mysore
| N | Chief Justice | Term |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Charles George Plumer | 1884 – July 1890 |
| 2 | Sir T. R. A. Thumboo Chetty | July 1890 – 4 November 1895 |
| 3 | James William Best | 4 November 1895 – 1907 |
| 4 | Stanley Ismay | 1908–1912 |
| 5 | P. Mahadevayya | 1931–1934 |
| 6 | Justice Palecanda Belliappa Medapa | 1948 -1955 |
- High Court of Karnataka
| # | Chief Justice | Term |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | R.Venkataramaiah | 1 November 1956 – 16 July 1957 |
| 2 | S. R. Das Gupta | 25 July 1957 – 13 August 1961 |
| 3 | Nittoor Srinivasa Rau | 29 March 1962 – 7 August 1963 |
| 4 | A. R. Somanath Iyer | 23 November 1969 – 29 December 1969 |
| 5 | M. Sadasivayya | 30 December 1969 – 16 September 1970 |
| 6 | A. Narayana Pai | 17 September 1970 – 6 June 1973 |
| 7 | G. K. Govinda Bhat | 7 June 1973 – 14 December 1977 |
| 8 | D. M. Chandrashekar | 22 March 1978 – 25 September 1982 |
| 9 | K. Bhimaiah | 28 October 1982 – 10 April 1983 |
| 10 | V. S. Malimath | 6 February 1984 – 24 October 1985 |
| 11 | Prem Chand Jain | 28 August 1986 – 16 September 1989 |
| 12 | S. Mohan | 26 October 1989 – 7 October 1991 |
| 13 | S. P. Bharucha | 1 January 1991 – 30 June 1992 |
| 14 | S. B. Majumdar | 2 July 1993 – 13 September 1994 |
| 15 | G. T. Nanavati | 28 September 1994 – 4 March 1995 |
| 16 | M. L. Pendse | 28 July 1995 – 25 March 1996 |
| 17 | S. A. Hakeem | 3 May 1996 – 9 May 1996 |
| 18 | R. P. Sethi | 29 June 1996 – 6 January 1999 |
| 19 | Y. Bhaskar Rao | 9 March 1999 – 26 June 2000 |
| 20 | P. V. Reddi | 21 October 2000 – 16 August 2001 |
| 21 | Nagendra Kumar Jain | 31 August 2001 – 20 October 2004 |
| 22 | N. K. Sodhi | 19 November 2004 – 29 November 2005 |
| 23 | Cyriac Joseph | 7 January 2006 – 6 July 2008 |
| 24 | P. D. Dinakaran | 8 August 2008 – 7 August 2010 |
| 25 | Jagdish Singh Khehar | 8 August 2010 – 12 September 2011 |
| 26 | Vikramajit Sen | 24 December 2011 – 24 December 2012 |
| 27 | Dhirendra Hiralal Waghela | 7 March 2013 – 1 June 2015 |
| 28 | Subhro Kamal Mukherjee | 23 February 2016– 9 October 2017 |
| 29 | Dinesh Maheshwari | 12 February 2018 – 17 January 2019 |
| 30 | Abhay Shreeniwas Oka | 10 May 2019 – 30 August 2021 |
| 31 | Ritu Raj Awasthi | 11 October 2021- Incumbent |
Judges[edit]
 | This article needs to be updated. (October 2021) |
The current sitting judges of the court are as follows:[14]
| # | Name | Position | From |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ritu Raj Awasthi | Chief Justice | 11 October 2021 |
| 2 | Alok Aradhe | Permanent Judge | 17 November 2018 |
| 3 | S. Sujatha | Permanent Judge | 2 January 2015 |
| 4 | B. Veerappa | Permanent Judge | 2 January 2015 |
| 5 | G. Narendar | Permanent Judge | 2 January 2015 |
| 6 | P. S. Dinesh Kumar | Permanent Judge | 2 January 2015 |
| 7 | Pavankumar Bhimappa Bajantri | Permanent Judge | 17 November 2018 |
| 8 | K. Somashekar | Permanent Judge | 14 November 2016 |
| 9 | Kottravva Somappa Mudagal | Permanent Judge | 14 November 2016 |
| 10 | Sreenivas Harish Kumar | Permanent Judge | 14 November 2016 |
| 11 | Nangli Krishnarao Sudhindrarao | Permanent Judge | 21 February 2017 |
| 12 | Hosur Bhujangaraya Prabhakara Sastry | Permanent Judge | 21 February 2017 |
| 13 | Dixit Krishna Shripad | Permanent Judge | 14 February 2018 |
| 14 | Shankar Ganapathi Pandit | Permanent Judge | 14 February 2018 |
| 15 | R Devdas | Permanent Judge | 14 February 2018 |
| 16 | Bhotanhosur Mallikarjuna Shyam Prasad | Permanent Judge | 14 February 2018 |
| 17 | Siddappa Sunil Dutt Yadav | Permanent Judge | 14 February 2018 |
| 18 | Mohammad Nawaz | Permanent Judge | 02 June 2018 |
| 19 | Harekoppa Thimmana Gowda Narendra Prasad | Permanent Judge | 02 June 2018 |
| 20 | Ashok Golappa Nijagannavar | Permanent Judge | 03 November 2018 |
| 21 | Hethur Puttaswamygowda Sandesh | Permanent Judge | 03 November 2018 |
| 22 | Krishnan Natarajan | Permanent Judge | 03 November 2018 |
| 23 | S.R. Krishna Kumar | Permanent Judge | 23 September 2019 |
| 24 | Suraj Govindaraj | Permanent Judge | 23 September 2019 |
| 25 | Sachin Shankar Magadum | Permanent Judge | 23 September 2019 |
| 26 | Neranahalli Srinivasan Sanjay Gowda | Permanent Judge | 11 November 2019 |
| 27 | Jyoti Mulimani | Permanent Judge | 11 November 2019 |
| 28 | Nataraj Rangaswamy | Permanent Judge | 11 November 2019 |
| 29 | Hemant Chandangoudar | Permanent Judge | 11 November 2019 |
| 30 | Pradeep Singh Yerur | Permanent Judge | 11 November 2019 |
| 31 | Maheshan Nagaprasanna | Permanent Judge | 26 November 2019 |
| 32 | Maralur Indrakumar Arun | Additional Judge | 07 January 2020 |
| 33 | Engalaguppe Seetharamaiah Indiresh | Additional Judge | 07 January 2020 |
| 34 | Ravi Venkappa Hosmani | Additional Judge | 07 January 2020 |
| 35 | Savanur Vishwajith Shetty | Additional Judge | 28 April 2020 |
| 36 | Shivashankar Amarannavar | Additional Judge | 04 May 2020 |
| 37 | Makkimane Ganeshaiah Uma | Additional Judge | 04 May 2020 |
| 38 | Vedavyasachar Srishananda | Additional Judge | 04 May 2020 |
| 39 | Hanchate Sanjeevkumar | Additional Judge | 04 May 2020 |
| 40 | Padmaraj Nemachandra Desai | Additional Judge | 04 May 2020 |
| 41 | P Krishna Bhat | Additional Judge | 21 May 2020 |
| 42 | M. G. Shukure Kamal | Additional Judge | 17 March 2021 |
| 43 | Rajendra Badamikar | Additional Judge | 25 March 2021 |
| 44 | Khazi Jaibunnisa Mohiuddin | Additional Judge | 25 March 2021 |
Additional Benches[edit]
The Karnataka High Court is currently functional in Bangalore, Dharwad and Gulbarga. There was a long-standing demand for an additional bench as the location of Bangalore in south-east corner of the state caused hardship for people visiting the High Court from the distant northern regions of the state. This issue led to agitation, including boycott of court proceedings by lawyers in the northern region. The demand was finally met in the year 2006 when it was decided that circuit benches of the High Court would be set up in Dharwad and Gulbarga.[15] The new branches were inaugurated on 4 and 5 July 2008, respectively. There was later demand to make both Dharwad and Gulbarga benches permanent. Consequently, Dharwad circuit bench became a permanent bench from 25 August 2013 and Gulbarga circuit bench became a permanent bench from 31 August 2013.
Controversies[edit]
In late 2002, 14 newspapers and periodicals reported that some judges from the High Court of Karnataka were allegedly involved in a sex scandal in Mysore. A high-level judicial inquiry committee was established by the Chief Justice. Later, the committee acquitted the judges as they could not find any substantive evidence.[16][17][18]
References[edit]
- ^ Article 216 of the Constitution of India (1950)
- ^ "High Court of Karnataka Official Web Site".
- ^ "High Court sees highest number of judges at 43". The Hindu. 9 January 2020. Archived from the original on 21 December 2020. Retrieved 21 December 2020.
- ^ Article 227, Clause 1 of the Constitution of India (1950)
- ^ Article 227, Clause 4 of the Constitution of India (1950)
- ^ Article 215 of the Constitution of India (1950)
- ^ "Permanent Benches of Karnataka High Court Established at Dharwad and Gulbarga". Retrieved 24 February 2022.
- ^ "Dharwad high court bench all set to celebrate its 10th anniversay". Retrieved 24 February 2022.
- ^ "Attara Kacheri: Building that housed 18 public departments made way for Karnataka High Court". The Economic Times. Retrieved 5 January 2021.
- ^ "When the axe was spared". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 18 April 2007. Archived from the original on 10 December 2007. Retrieved 11 September 2007.
- ^ "The battle for Attara Kacheri". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 18 April 2006. Archived from the original on 12 September 2006. Retrieved 11 September 2007.
- ^ "List of Judges of Karnataka who were appointed as Chief Justice of India". Online webpage of The High Court of Karnataka. Retrieved 11 September 2007.
- ^ "List of Judges of Karnataka who were appointed as judges in the Supreme Court of India". Online webpage of The High Court of Karnataka. Retrieved 11 September 2007.
- ^ High Court of Karnataka - Profile of sitting judges
- ^ "Contracts signed for circuit Bench buildings". The Hindu. Chennai, India. 5 August 2006. Archived from the original on 29 November 2010. Retrieved 11 September 2007.
- ^ "Mysore sex scandal: Media faces contempt case". The Times of India. India. 7 February 2003. Retrieved 7 February 2003.
- ^ "Contempt proceedings against scribes stayed". The Tribune. Retrieved 5 May 2003.
- ^ "Karnataka HC judges cleared in sex scandal". Rediff. Retrieved 2 February 2003.
Further reading[edit]
- Jurisdiction and Seats of Indian High Courts
- Judge strength in High Courts increased
- Dharwad HC circuit bench gets permanent tag – Business Standard News