Central tribunal benches sought in Dharwad

Dharwad: Calling for equitable access to justice for the people of North Karnataka, the High Court Bench Advocates' Association, Dharwad, has urged the Union govt to decentralise central tribunals and establish their permanent benches at the Dharwad bench of the Karnataka high court.Submitting a detailed charter of demands to Union minister Pralhad Joshi, association president BD Hiremath said the appeal reflects the aspirations of litigants, legal professionals and stakeholders across 12 districts in the region.Describing Dharwad as the long-recognised "Judicial Capital" of North Karnataka, Hiremath noted that the Dharwad Bench, established in 2013, caters to eight key districts— Bagalkot, Belagavi, Ballari, Dharwad, Gadag, Haveri, Koppal and Uttara Kannada.Despite this, litigants are forced to travel nearly 430 km to Bengaluru for matters under various central tribunals. "This defeats the principle of ‘justice at the doorstep' and undermines the constitutional mandate of equal access to justice under Article 39A," he said.The association highlighted that North Karnataka has a significant concentration of central govt employees from departments such as Railways, posts, BSNL and defence establishments. At present, all service-related grievances are handled by the Central Administrative Tribunal in Bengaluru, compelling employees to undertake long and expensive journeys.Similarly, the advocates' body has sought the establishment of a Railway Claims Tribunal bench in Dharwad. Given that Hubballi-Dharwad serves as the headquarters of the South Western Railway, it is "logically inconsistent" for Railway claims and disputes to be adjudicated only in Bengaluru, Hiremath argued.The association has also called for a National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) bench in Dharwad, citing rapid industrial growth in the Hubballi-Dharwad region and the emerging Belagavi-Dharwad industrial corridor. A local NCLT bench, it said, would significantly aid corporate dispute resolution and insolvency matters.Further, while the state bench of the GST Appellate Tribunal is operational in Bengaluru, the volume of commercial activity in North Karnataka justifies setting up an area bench in Dharwad to prevent a growing backlog of tax appeals.The memorandum also underlined the need for specialised forums to handle debt recovery and income tax appeals, given the presence of major educational institutions, regional banking headquarters and commercial enterprises in the twin cities.Highlighting Dharwad's readiness, Hiremath noted that the state govt has already provided world-class infrastructure for the high court bench. The presence of the Karnataka State Law University, he added, ensures a steady pool of legal talent to support the functioning of new tribunals.The association has urged Union govt to exercise its powers under the respective parent acts to notify Dharwad as a permanent seat for these central tribunal benches. Such a move, it argued, would ease the burden on Bengaluru and deliver affordable, timely justice to the people of North Karnataka.