MBA holds Jatha demanding High Court Bench in Mangaluru
Mangaluru: Mangalore Bar Association held a Jatha, from the court premises, here on November 11 demanding the high court bench in Mangaluru.
The Jatha which was flagged off by the President of Mangalore Bar Association, S P Chengappa at the court premises culminated in front of the DC office.
Addressing the protestors, Chengappa said, “The purpose of this protest is to establish a circuit bench of the High court in Mangaluru, Karnataka. At present only 30 percent of the public are able to seek justice, whereas 70 percent of the general public are not aware of the law and the facilities of the high court. According to the constitution, we must bring the law to the doorsteps of the people. However, at present need to travel more than 350 km to Bengaluru, to avail the services of the High Court. It is difficult for the people living not only in Mangaluru, but other districts surrounding Mangaluru, such as Chikkamagaluru, Kodava, Madikeri, etc. The expenses are also doubled as people not only spend on traveling and accommodation in Bengaluru but also the lawyer’s fees.”
He further said, “In regard to issues of the welfare funds, young advocates are not getting the stipend. Those who have worked all their life did not get the benefits of this facility. At present, the income limit is Rs 40,000 per month to get the stipend which should be withdrawn. The stipend should be increased from Rs 2000 to Rs 3000 for young advocates. Lawyers get a stipend of RS 2000 per month as long as their income is below RS 40 thousand. We want the income rule to be withdrawn and the young advocates should recieve RS 3 thousand stipend per month for a period of 36 months.”
SDM law college, Students President, Vikas Uttya stated, “Having a high court bench in Mangaluru will not only benefit the District of Dakshina Kanada, but also the students who are financially weak and want to work in the high court without having to move to Bengaluru. Untill we get a high court bench in Mangaluru, we will not stop our agitation. This is only the beginning. We students are supporting the Mangalore Bar Association in every aspect of their agitation as we are the future lawyers and this agitation is for the benefit of the students and the public.”
General Secretary of MBA, Raghavendra H V said “Around 157 lawyers from the Mangalore Bar Association, have taken part in the protest here, as the rest are attending the court proceedings. We need the high court bench in mangaluru, for the benefit of the public. We advocates have been fighting for the high court bench in Mangaluru since 8 years, and we will not stop until we succeed.”
Yashodhar P Karkera, Yatheesha, Suamana Sharan, Sundar Gowda B, Dinkar Shetty, Asha Nayak and others were also present.
By Caroline D’Souza, Pics by Astel Pereira, Team Mangalorean