Shivamogga MP B.Y. Raghavendra led a delegation demanding a High Court Circuit Bench for Shivamogga, while strongly opposing links to a proposed Mangaluru bench
SHIVAMOGGA
Shivamogga Lok Sabha MP B.Y. Raghavendra led a high-profile delegation to meet Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot and Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar in Bengaluru, demanding a High Court Circuit Bench for the district. The strategic push aims to make access to justice faster and cheaper for the people of Central Karnataka and the Malnad region.
The delegation, which included senior lawyers and local MLAs, emphasized that Shivamogga has emerged as a major administrative, transport, and commercial hub. They argued that establishing a bench here would immensely benefit litigants across the neighboring districts of Chikkamagaluru, Davanagere, and Chitradurga. Currently, locals must make grueling journeys to Bengaluru for high court hearings.
Crucially, Raghavendra strongly opposed recent proposals to place Shivamogga under the jurisdiction of a planned circuit bench in coastal Mangaluru. He explained that traveling to Mangaluru requires navigating treacherous Western Ghats roads that are highly prone to heavy landslides during monsoon seasons. Instead, the MP urged that Shivamogga must remain linked directly to the main Bengaluru bench until its own independent circuit bench is constructed.
During the crucial meeting with Chief Minister Shivakumar, Raghavendra also raised a vital local grievance regarding crop insurance. He urged the state government to immediately fix existing calculation technical errors that have unfairly hit thousands of struggling farmers across Shivamogga district. Top bar association presidents from Sagar, Shikaripura, and Shivamogga attended the meetings, lending massive legal support to the dual-focused administrative appeal.