New HC bench at Kolhapur? Lawyers meet to discuss it

Lawyers will meet in Mumbai on Wednesday to discuss an issue that has been hanging fire for years — the setting up of a bench of the Bombay High Court in Kolhapur. The meeting has been convened by the Advocates’ Association of Western India (AAWI).

- Mayura Janwalkar

Talk of the proposed bench has been doing the rounds for a while now but the buzz has gathered momentum in the high court in recent times. If set up, the bench would cater to six districts in the state, which could ease the burden of cases on the Bombay High Court's principal bench in Mumbai.

The high court has issued no official communication about a bench in Kolhapur being under consideration, nor have the offices of the chief justice or registrar general commented on the matter. Lawyers, however, will meet to discuss the issue. In an invitation sent to senior members of the AAWI to attend the special general body meeting on Wednesday, Prashant Relekar, president of the AAWI, said, “This is in regard to discussion about establishment of Kolhapur Bench which (is) going on. Establishment of such a Bench would affect several members and mostly junior members who have settled in and around Mumbai.”