As any of those who reside in any of the districts of West UP know, the senior lawyers of West UP comprising of present and former President and General Secretary of 22 districts of West UP will again assemble as usual on October 28, 2023 under the banner of the Central Action Committee at Ghaziabad as has been happening since last more than 42 years since May 1981 after the lawyers of 22 districts of West UP and so also those districts who now form part of Uttarakhand decided to form a united forum to pursue the struggle relentlessly for a High Court Bench in West UP in May 1981 in protest against Centre’s most ridiculous, retrograde and reprehensible decision displaying open partiality by not allowing creation of even one High Court Bench in undivided UP even though Justice Jaswant Singh Commission headed by a former Supreme Court Judge had recommended three High Court Benches for it while wasting no time in creating a High Court Bench in Aurangabad in Maharashtra in 1985 which already had multiple High Court Benches at Nagpur and Panaji and so also at Jalpaiguri in West Bengal which already had a Bench at Port Blair in Andaman and Nicobar islands for just 3 lakh people but for more than 10 crore people of West UP we saw Centre did not approve even a single High Court Bench and when the people of hilly areas agitated then Centre in 2000 gave them High Court itself by creating it as a State with population of about 88 lakh at that time but as long as it formed part of UP, it refused to create two Benches as recommended by Justice Jaswant Singh Commission at Dehradun and Nainital respectively due to which the litigants of hilly areas had to travel thousands of kilometers all the way not even till Lucknow which falls about 230 km earlier but right till Allahabad to seek justice!

It is most shocking that UP which is among the largest States, has maximum population – more than 25 crore, maximum districts 75, maximum constituencies 80, maximum MPs 80, maximum MLAs 404, maximum PM including Narendra Modi who represents Varanasi as an MP, maximum pending cases – more than 10 lakh and here too West UP accounts for more than half of pending cases as noted by Justice Jaswant Commission about 57%, maximum Judges both in High Court – 160 and also in lower courts, maximum vacancies of Judges about 60 in High Court and 1200 in lower courts, maximum members in UP Bar Council more than 3 lakh and which is also the largest Bar Council in the world as claimed in the website itself of UP Bar Council yet the former Chairman of UP Bar Council – Darvesh Yadav who was the first woman to get appointed to this post was murdered cold blooded right in court premises in Agra which is again in West UP on June 12, 2019 by pumping bullets on her head and stomach, maximum poverty, maximum villages more than one lakh the exact number being 107040, maximum gram panchayats at 74626, maximum fake encounters killings, maximum custody killings, maximum dowry cases, maximum bride burning cases, maximum cases of human rights violations, maximum robberies, maximum dacoities, maximum undertrials, maximum cases of crime, loot, arson and riots and here too West UP tops with Saharanpur riots, Meerut riots, Muzaffarnagar riots tarnishing our international reputation to the extent that former UN Secretary General Ban ki Moon termed UP as crime and rape capital of India and what not yet Centre till now with 2024 about to start from 1948 when a Bench was created in Lucknow which is so close to Allahabad and where it was just not required at all is just not prepared to create even a single bench for not just West UP but for the entire UP? Area of West UP is 98,933 square km and accounts for 33.61 percent of total area of UP and has 30 districts yet no bench but Lucknow with just 62,363 square km and 12 districts has a Bench!



Why is it that the people of West UP of 30 districts foolishly were compelled and are still compelled to travel all the way to Allahabad which is far away even from Lucknow where High Court Bench is located and averages 600 to 750 km on an average? Most shamefully and most disgracefully, why is it that the people of Uttarakhand had to travel thousands of kilometers all the way shamelessly, senselessly and stupidly all the way not to even Lucknow but right upto Allahabad which is most horrendous for more than 50 years from 1947 till end of 2000 when a separate state was created termed as Uttarakhand when people agitated violently and a High Court was then allotted for them?

As if this was not enough, the UPA government headed by former PM Manmohan Singh pompously decided to create 2 more High Court Benches for Karnataka which already had a Bench at Hubli for just 4 and 8 districts at Dharwad and Gulbarga respectively in 2008 first as Circuit Bench and then later in 2013 as full Bench as the Karnataka leaders who were very influential were Law Ministers and cared for Karnataka! The lawyers of West UP headed by senior lawyers and Chairman and Secretary of Central Action Committee constituted for setting up a High Court Bench in 1981 repeatedly met the PM, UPA Chairperson Mrs Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi among others but all that UP got was a big slap on its face as not a single Bench was allowed anywhere in UP! For more than 10 crore people of West UP alone no Bench but for just 6 crore people of Karnataka, Centre felt most proud to create 2 more Benches for just 4 and 8 districts at Dharwad and Gulbarga which already had a High Court and a Bench at Hubli which makes me hang my head in shame! This despite the fact that Karnataka is a very peaceful state and in UP we see how all opposition parties keep beating their chest on lawlessness yet has just one Bench so close to Allahabad at Lucknow where it was just not needed at all!

But why blame UPA alone? Even the incumbent PM Narendra Damodardas Modi has ensured that not a single High Court is approved anywhere not just in West UP but in any hook and corner of UP even though it is UP which primarily decides which party will rule in Delhi! The incumbent CM of UP – Yogi Aditynath had thundered with full might for a High Court Bench in Gorakhpur in 1999 while he was MP from there right inside Parliament and in 2015 even placed a private member bill with tears in eyes but he cannot be blamed as it is Centre which has to take the final call on this! Even Atal Bihari Vajpayee had as Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha demanded High Court Bench in 1986 for West UP at Meerut yet we saw nothing translating on ground!

It cannot be lightly dismissed that none other than the former CJI Ranjan Gogoi while in office as CJI had categorically appreciated the dire need of a High Court Bench in West UP when a woman lawyer named KL Chitra raised this burning issue in her PIL but Gogoi made it clear that it was for the Centre to take the final call on this! But Centre led by PM Narendra Damodardas Modi is very firm that what Jawaharlal Nehru did in 1948 to allot Bench only for Nawab City that is Lucknow should be always maintained and in his more than 9 years as PM, he has proudly done that about which I myself feel most ashamed as the most historic recommendations of 230th report of Law Commission recommending creation of more Benches have been thrown in the dustbin! This despite the irrefutable fact that BJP tall leaders like Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, Union Minister like Gen VK Singh among others have always reiterated support for a Bench as the people of 30 districts are compelled to travel whole night and half day all the way to Allahabad most foolishly which is truly incomprehensible!

The whole point is: Why is Centre taking such an exceedingly long span of time of more than 75 years to decide on creation of a Bench in West UP when it took no time for Lucknow where it was just not needed as it is so close to Allahabad? Why Centre’s lofty words of providing justice at doorsteps has never matched in action with no Bench being set up in UP and lawless Bihar? Why Telangana with just 3.5 crore population was given Statehood by Centre in June 2014 while most disgracefully coughing groundless excuses for not granting even a Bench to West UP even though Justice Jaswant Singh Commission appointed by Centre itself had very strongly recommended for the same?

It must be asked: How can both CJI and Centre close their eyes to the unpalatable ground reality that UP tops the States list in having maximum pending cases and here too it is West UP which owes for more than half of the total pending cases of UP and still has no Bench? Can CJI and Centre both close their eyes, ears and mind to this unpalatable ground reality? Why is it that a peaceful State like Maharashtra which happens to be the home State of the incumbent CJI Dr DY Chandrachud has maximum High Court Benches and UP slammed by former UN Secretary General Ban ki Moon as the rape and crime capital of India has minimum and West UP which owes for more than half of the total number of pending cases has none?

Centre must definitely act now and not just keep shelling out one pretext or the other to ensure that not a single Bench is created in either UP or Bihar and peaceful States like Telangana with just 3.5 crore population promptly being conferred Statehood itself! Justice must not only be done but should be seen to be done which we don’t see happening in the case of setting up of High Court Benches in UP and lawless Bihar due to which lawyers go on strike every Saturday since May 1981 till October 2023 and went on strike so many times as for 6 months in 2001 and for six months in 2014-15 and strike for a month or so every two or three years once! There can be no gainsaying that Centre must at least now step forward, display some magnanimity and not make it a prestige issue because when 2 High Court Benches for just 4 and 8 districts only can be created in Karnataka where lawyers never protested then why can’t even one High Court Bench be not created in 30 districts of West UP where lawyers have been agitating so hard so that the litigants don’t have to travel whole night and a day all the way right uptill Allahabad to seek justice? One cannot gauge the exact reason as to why West UP cannot have a High Court Bench!

What really predominates my mind most of the time is the moot question worth billion dollars: Why has Centre allowed openly such a worst mockery of the concept of equality as encapsulated in the Article 14 of the Constitution at the first place? Why even Apex Court has never exercised its powers under Article 142 of the Constitution to speak up on it by taking up the matter suo motu? Let’s still fervently hope that it takes up so in the days ahead!

Sanjeev Sirohi, Advocate,
s/o Col (Retd) BPS Sirohi, A 82, Defence Enclave,
Sardhana Road, Kankerkhera, Meerut – 250001, Uttar Pradesh