Lawyers strike in demand for circuit bench of the High Court in Dharamshala

Dharamshala: In the context of their main demand of circuit bench of the High Court in Dharamshala, the lawyers of the District Courts of the most populated district of Himachal have decided not to attend any court from today. The layers were protesting since 27th of the last month, but few of their representatives were allowed to attend the daily proceedings of the courts, this arrangement is also being seized from today.
It was decided today in a meeting of Bar Association of Dharamshala under the chairmanship of District Bar Association President Mr.Tarun Sharma that from today till the next decision of the association no lawyer will attend any court in the District Courts Campus Dharamshala.
“During this time, no work of the courts shall be conducted including Lok Adalat, Legal Aid Council, Notary, Oath Commission, Mediation etc”, said Mr.Tarun.  It was also decided by the bar association that from Tuesday the bar association members will hold a sit-in demonstration in the district court premises in the context of their demands.
Mr Chakshu press secretary of Bar Association Djaramshala said that the memorandum of demands was  submitted  to the Honorable High Court Shimla. According to the spokesperson of District Kangra Bar Association their major and long standing  demand is of the  stetting-up of the a circuit bench of the High Court in Dharamshala . He said that so far no meaningful steps have been taken in this direction.
He said that circuit courts are also being set up in Palampur, Dehra and Nurpur, at  the same time, now the family court is also being said to be created  at the circuit level. He said that in such a situation it has become difficult for the lawyers to work in Dharamshala.
The district court lawyers of Dharamshala are raising this demand for the many years , the last  major protest was organised in 2016, when the lawyers  went on a hunger strike. Mr.Chakshu said, “Neither the High Court nor the government is keen to address our demands. Our long standing demands of either abolition of circuit courts in Kangra or setting up of a High Court Circuit Bench at Dharamshala have ever been met with.”
He said that all the previous governments promised to fulfil our demands but none worked in this direction./ Arvind Sharma