In a significant development within Uttarakhand’s legal community, representatives from the Kashipur Bar Association met with Justice Alok Kumar Verma, the Administrative Judge of the Nainital High Court, at the Mandi Samiti guest house. The meeting, which took place on Monday, was aimed at addressing several judicial and administrative requests pertaining to the local legal framework.
The delegation, including the Vice-President of the Bar Association, Anup Kumar Sharma, Deputy Secretary Suraj Kumar, and Auditor Himanshu Vishnoi, presented a memorandum to Justice Verma. The memorandum outlines critical demands aimed at enhancing the judicial process in the Kashipur, Jaspur, and Bazpur regions.
Among the significant requests, the association has asked for the handling of NDPS (Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act) and POCSO (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act) cases to be allocated to the First Additional District and Sessions Judge (ADJ) courts. This move aims to streamline and specialize the judicial handling of such sensitive cases.
Furthermore, the Bar Association has proposed the establishment of a new court in Kashipur and insists on keeping the Labour Court within the city to ensure continued access to justice for local residents. They also advocated for the First and Second ADJ to preside over cases under the Motor Accidents Claims and Special Acts, to better manage the caseload and provide timely judgments.
Another critical request made was for the authority of remand and hearings under the Provident Fund Act to be given to the Assistant Chief Judicial Magistrate (ACJM) court. The association also pushed for transferring all criminal cases from the 14 villages of the newly included Bharatpur Nyaya Panchayat to the Kashipur court, thereby centralizing legal proceedings and making justice more accessible and affordable for local litigants.
