In an initiative to preserve and exhibit historical judicial documents and artefacts, the Gauhati High Court's Museum was inaugurated on Saturday on the occasion of Diamond Jubilee Celebration of Bar Council of Assam, Arunachal, Nagaland and Mizoram. The event witnessed the attendance of Justice Surya Kant, Justice Hrishikesh Roy and Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia, Judges, Supreme Court of India...
Mr. Rijiju took to the Twitter on Saturday and wrote,
Efforts for establishment of the museum dates back to the year 2014, when the then Chief Justice of the High Court Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre (later a Judge of the Apex Court) formed a two-member Committee, comprising Justice Arup Kumar Goswami, the then Judge of Gauhati High Court (currently the Chief Justice, Chhattisgarh High Court) and Justice M.R. Pathak, to oversee and supervise the establishment of the museum.
The history of the High Court goes back to 9th September 1947, when the Assam Legislative Assembly adopted a resolution to establish a High Court in Assam. Accordingly, the Governor General promulgated the Assam High Court Order, 1948 on 1st March 1948, as a result of which the Assam High Court came into being on 5th April 1948. The then Chief Justice of India Harilal J. Kania inaugurated the highest judicial institution for the State.
Sir R.F. Lodge was the first Chief Justice of the Court. The Court used to sit at Shillong in its early days. However, it shifted to Guwahati soon. Subsequently, the Assam High Court got renamed as the Gauhati High Court, upon reorganization of the north-east region of the country through the North-Eastern Area (Re-organization) Act, 1971, when five north-eastern states, i.e. Assam, Nagaland, Manipur, Meghalaya and Tripura and two Union Territories, i.e. Mizoram and Arunachal Pradesh came under its jurisdiction.
In the later years, the States of Manipur, Meghalaya and Tripura got their own High Courts and currently, the High Court has principal seat at Guwahati along with three Permanent Benches at Itangar, Kohima and Aizawl respectively.