Karnataka High Court Offices Operating From Basement To Be Shifted To DTE Building; Registry Asked To Place On Record Available Space

A division bench of Chief Justice Abhay Oka and Justice N S Sanjay Gowda directed the Registrar General to contact the Commissioner of Technical Education in order to complete the formalities for taking over possession of the said two rooms. The court said the same should be done within a period of three weeks from today.

Advocate Ramesh Naik L appearing as party in person pointed out to the court that the rooms allotted may not be sufficient in terms of space for shifting the office spaces which are presently housed in the basement of the court premises. Accordingly, the court directed the registry to place on record the details of the space of the two rooms. Orally it said, "If the space allotted is not sufficient we can always direct the State government to provide more space."

The petition states that the use of the basement in the High Court building as offices is contrary to law. It has prayed for a direction to the State Government to make additional space available to the High Court, so that the use of the basement for office purposes can be immediately stopped.

On November 30, 2020 the High Court had sent a proposal to the State Government for allotment of vacant space on the ground floor of the Technical Education Building, K.R. Circle, Bengaluru, where some sections of the offices can be shifted.

Case Title: Ramesh Naik L v. State of Karnataka

Case No: WP 52022/2019