Integrated court complex, legal aid centre opened in Karaikal

Karaikal, Oct 10 (PTI): The Chief Justice of the Madras High Court Amreshwar Pratap Sahi inaugurated a integrated court complex and a legal aid centre here on Saturday in the presence of Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy.

Karaikal, Oct 10 (PTI): The Chief Justice of the Madras High Court Amreshwar Pratap Sahi inaugurated a integrated court complex and a legal aid centre here on Saturday in the presence of Puducherry Chief Minister V Narayanasamy. While the Chief Justice participated through video- conferencing from Chennai, the Puducherry Chief Minister, his cabinet colleagues and other officials took part in function at Karaikal.

Inaugurating the new buildings, the Chief Justice said the complex contained seven fully air-conditioned court halls, judges' chambers, a free legal aid centre, conference halls, record rooms, bar associations block, post office, ATM, canteen and other facilities. "The complex constructed at a cost of Rs 19.61 crore is a gift to the people of Karaikal and it will enliven hopes and aspirations of the people in the judiciary," he said.

Speaking on the occasion, Narayanasamy appealed to the Chief Justice for steps to establish a Bench of the Madras High Court in Puducherry. "The volume of cases in Puducherry is higher than those in Mizoram, Nagaland, Manipur and other states that have High Court Benches. The Puducherrygovernment has already sent representations to the Union Law Ministry in this regard. We request initiatives from the Madras High Court too," he said.

Narayanasamy said senior advocates from Puducherry should be considered for appointment as High Court judges on merit basis. Also, he announced a stipend scheme for budding lawyers in the Union Territory. They, he said, would get Rs 5,000 per month as assistance.

He pointed out that the Puducherry government was granting paid internship opportunities for law students in the Union Territory. Puducherry Ministers A Namashivayam and R Kamalakannan, Chief Secretary Ashwini Kumar, Puducherry Chief Judge P Dhanapal, Karaikal District Judge S Karthikeyan, Karaikal District Collector Arjun Sharma and Senior Superintendent of Police Niharika Bhatt were among those present.