The Supreme Court on Wednesday paved the way for shifting the Uttarakhand High Court from Nainital to Haldwani by setting aside the High Court's 2024 order that rejected the State government's proposal for the new site. The top court ruled that such decisions should be taken on the administrative side in consultation with the State government and not through judicial proceedings.
A Bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana directed the State Government to hand over possession of the earmarked land in Haldwani to the High Court at the earliest on an "as is, where is" basis. It also ordered the State to issue the land transfer notification within eight weeks. While noting that some trees stand on the site, the Bench said possession could be handed over with the trees, adding that the "Greenery of the area should not be disturbed," Live Law and Bar & Bench report.
Administrative Decision, Not Judicial
Allowing the appeal filed by the Uttarakhand High Court Bar Association, the Supreme Court said the High Court had no authority to pass such directions on the judicial side. "High court has no business to pass such orders on the judicial side," the Bench observed, adding that infrastructure-related issues must be resolved administratively between the High Court and the State government.
The Supreme Court also set aside the High Court's direction to conduct a referendum among lawyers and the public on whether the High Court should be shifted. The High Court had ordered the Registrar General to create an online portal to gather opinions after directing the Chief Secretary to identify a more suitable site.
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The Uttarakhand Cabinet had approved the proposal to shift the High Court from Nainital to Haldwani in 2022. However, the High Court later rejected the 26-hectare site identified at Golapar after noting that nearly 75% of the land was covered with trees and expressing concern over their removal. It also cited traffic congestion, poor connectivity, inadequate medical facilities, accommodation issues for lawyers and the hardships faced by litigants travelling from remote districts as reasons for relocating the High Court.
The Supreme Court had stayed the High Court's order in 2024 while issuing notice to the respondents. With Wednesday's ruling, the top court has cleared the path for the long-pending relocation of the Uttarakhand High Court to Haldwani while leaving the remaining infrastructure-related decisions to be worked out by the High Court and the State government.
