No Proposal Received From Lakshadweep Admin. To Transfer Jurisdiction From Kerala HC To Karnataka HC: Centre Informs Lok Sabha

The Central Government on Wednesday clarified to the Parliament that it had not received any proposal from the Lakshadweep Administration to the effect of transferring its legal jurisdiction from Kerala High Court to the Karnataka High Court.

Union Minister Kiren Rijiju informed so while responding to certain questions posed by Members of Parliament in the Lok Sabha, namely  Anto Antony, Rajmohan Unnithan, and Hibi Eden.

At present, the Kerala High Court exercises territorial jurisdiction over Lakshadweep. However, last month, the Press Trust of India had reported that the Lakshadweep Administration had mooted a proposal to shift the Union Territory from the jurisdiction of the Kerala High Court to that of the Karnataka High Court.

Although the reports were denied by the Lakshadweep District Collector S Askar Ali, media reports reflecting this proposition the same had sparked controversy among the citizens. 

This was primarily because the news reports emerged at a time when multiple petitioners were filed before the Kerala High Court against the reforms introduced by the new Administrator Praful Khoda Patel.