Lawyers demand HC bench in Vizag

Visakhapatnam: All-India Lawyers Union and Forum of Legal Professionals in the city staged a dharna here on Thursday near Telugu talli statue, District Court Complex demanding that the government set up High Court Bench in Visakhapatnam.

Raising slogans, the lawyers including women lawyers protested for their long-pending demands including sanctioning of health cards, stipend to junior advocates and increase in judicial vacancies. Even after bifurcation of the High Court, the TDP government has not made any promise to establishment of the High Court Bench in Vizag city, pointed out advocate B V Ramanjaneya Rao.

Advocate N Venkateswara Rao said though the city had the best infrastructure, connectivity and legal talent, the High Court Bench is yet to become a reality. The establishment of High Court Bench is solely in the hands of the State government and Vizag would appropriate if the bench was in the city, they stated.

A senior advocate K Muralidhar opined we are lacking basic amenities such as clean restrooms, waiting halls, canteens in the district court complex. The government should have to provide the amenities first in the Vizag district court, he added.

Earlier, the State government has announced several sops to advocates, but they didn’t fulfill, they said. “We are demanding the government to issue health cards, stipend to junior advocates and allocation of more funds for welfare of advocates. If the government ignore our demands, we will intensify our protests till the government feel the heat,” they added.