Bathinda (Punjab): Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann's demand to give separate space to Punjab and Haryana High Courts was met with strong opposition from the legal community in the state. President of Bar Association Bathinda Virender Sharma said that the CM's statement is hurting the legal community's common interests.
"There are talks of establishing a separate High Court of Punjab and Harayana. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann demanded that space be provided to build two separate high courts from the central government," Sharma said. "This is causing harm to the common interests of the legal community in both states."
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Another advocate from the High Court of Punjab & Harayana said the issue will simmer down if the high courts are not separated but highlighted the need for another bench. "Considering the common people's opinion, more benches are established. More benches will enable people to get justice sooner. It will also be easier for the general public to access the High Court. However, our high court should be one," he said.
Suryakant Singla, the Senior Vice President of Bathinda Bar Association on the other hand, agrees with CM Bhagwant Mann's demand to build separate High Courts. "Bhagwant Mann's thinking is Punjab friendly. In my view, the pendency of cases in the Punjab and Haryana High Courts is so high that it takes at least ten to fifteen years for them to pass judgments," he said.
According to advocate Balveer Singh Dhillon, separate High Courts for Punjab and Harayana will ensure the public receives justice at a faster pace. "I have been advocating for forty five years. Punjab's High Court is located in a small corner of Haryana," he said. "Punjab should be in Punjab and Haryana should be in Haryana, The offices of Punjab are in a corner which is very wrong," he added.
A senior lawyer of the High Court, Manjit Singh Khair completely opposed CM Mann's demand. "Le Corbusier gave Chandigarh such a beautiful structure. Punjab has every right to this city. Separating half of Punjab from Chandigarh would be dishonest," he said. "The government is already mired in debt, where will it get the money to construct such an important infrastructure?"
Senior Advocate Jagmohan Singh Bhatti also disagrees with Mann. He says, "Punjab does not need a separate High Court. The Punjab government is already running at a loss of three lakh crore rupees. If, however, the Punjab government wants to create a separate High Court, it will be surprising. Punjab, Haryana and Himachal are united, if separate high courts are created, it will affect all the states as they will have to bear financial loss."
