Lawyers bat for Kolhapur circuit bench at Bombay High Court meeting

Kolhapur: A power point presentation was held before chief justice of Bombay High Court Alok Aradhe by a delegation of lawyers, highlighting the suitability of establishing a circuit bench of HC at Kolhapur on Friday evening in Mumbai.A delegation of lawyers associated with Kolhapur Action Committee for High Court of Bombay met chief justice Aradhe, administrative judges A.S. Chandurkar, M.S. Sonak, Revati Mohite-Dhere Patil, and Shri Ravindra V. Ghuge to discuss the establishment of a circuit bench of Bombay High Court at Kolhapur.The meeting took place three years after the last time the delegation met then chief justice Dipankar Datta, who sought a meeting with the chief minister of Maharashtra to discuss the demand.In recent days, the demand has gathered steam once again.Convener of action committee Sarjerao Khot, along with advocates Santosh Shah and Sangram Desai made the presentation, said Nishikant Patole, secretary of Kolhapur District Bar Association."The meeting concluded in a very cordial manner. Taking advantage of the conducive atmosphere, our convenor invited the chief justice and the administrative judges to visit Kolhapur, a request that was graciously accepted by them with humility," said Patole.The presentation covered Kolhapur's geographical situation, the pending cases from Kolhapur division in Bombay High Court, historical and geographical significance of Kolhapur, and highly conducive environment for establishing a circuit bench, including air and rail connectivity. It also emphasised the convenience for litigants from six districts, the distance to Mumbai, and how a circuit bench in Kolhapur would facilitate access to justice under concept of "justice at your doorstep". A positive discussion took place on all these matters, claimed Khot.