Lawyers suffer due to severe space crunch at new District Court building
| Date :19-Apr-2023 |
Staff Reporter
THE newly-constructed District Court Building has left the lawyers fraternity of Nagpur disappointed as they have not been allocated enough space to work. Despite the building’s massive size, lawyers have been given a total of only 3,000 square feet, with just 10 small rooms available for sitting arrangements. At present, 12,000 lawyers, of which 8,500 are registered, practise in the District Court. The number is set to increase by 50% in the next ten years.
The building’s huge size makes the shortage of space even more puzzling. Each floor has a whopping carpet area of 19,000 square feet, with parking space for 1,400 two-wheelers and 107 cars. The first floor of the building is reserved for parking of judges’ cars. However, lawyers have been provided inadequate sitting arrangements in the new building. During the building’s inauguration, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had claimed that a committee of lawyers was During the building’s inauguration, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had claimed that a committee of lawyers was consulted to incorporate their opinions during the construction. Still, the building’s complicated design has caused problem in allocating space for lawyers. The courts in the new building have ample space but the remaining rooms are not enough for lawyers. Of the 89 courts operating in the old court building, 26 have been relocated to the new building. Representatives of lawyers have demanded an area of around 30,000 square feet to accommodate the lawyers.
The District Bar Association (DBA) has also taken up the issue, submitting a memorandum to the Principal District Judge, who has promised to allocate vacated court space in the old building to lawyers. DBA President Adv Roshan Bagde told ‘The Hitavada’, “Allocating more space to lawyers and addressing the shortage of space for women lawyers and young lawyers is necessary to ensure that they can practice their profession effectively.” He said the DBA has already taken up the issue with the concerned authorities.
DBA Secretary Adv Manish Randive pointed out that a court requires infrastructure for 100 practicing lawyers and as 26 courts have been moved to the new building, there should be seating arrangements for a minimum of 2,600 lawyers. However, the new building provides sitting arrangement for only 300 lawyers. “We were planning sitting arrangements for young lawyers at the new building. However, their dream came to an end with this arrangement,” he said. DBA Vice-president Adv Usha Gujar further pointed out that there was no special room with an attached washroom for lady lawyers, despite their number increasing from 60 to 2,500 since the inauguration of the old court building in 1972. “Considering that many women lawyers from Tehsil areas of the district come to the district court for practice, a changing room for women lawyers should be provided,” she said.
Senior advocate and ex-DBA President Prashant Kumar Sathianathan argued that the sitting arrangements must be reviewed immediately and that lawyers must be given a place in the new building. “Practicing without a proper place to sit in court would be difficult for lawyers,” he said. He also questioned whether the promises made to 1,200 lawyers from the old treasury building when they were relocated to the old building had been fulfilled.
‘Allocate 2nd floor to lawyers’
EXPERTS suggested that the four courts of the Motor Accident Claim Tribunal (MAC) situated at the second floor should be shifted to the old court building and the vacated space could be given to lawyers. This solution can potentially resolve the space crunch, they said.