CUTTACK: In order to preserve judicial history of the State including old records and documents, the Orissa High Court has taken up two projects - ‘Judicial History of Odisha’ and ‘Museum of Justice’.High Court sources said the documentation of the judicial history of Odisha has been planned with research into the old records which are treasure-trove of historical information. The Museum of Justice would recreate court buildings, court rooms and artefacts of judicial historical importance.
The two projects are being undertaken in collaboration with INTACH and Piloo Mody College of Architecture with the support of the Government of Odisha. Sources said apart from the old judicial records of Orissa High Court, records will also include three other high courts - Calcutta, Patna and Madras. There will also be records belonging to the erstwhile high courts of the princely states of Mayurbhanj, Sonepur, Patnagarh and others. Even the district courts have records dating back to the early 19th century.
As a prelude to the two projects, the High Court organised a one-day workshop on April 9, 2022. Chief Justice S Muralidhar formally launched the Judicial History project. The Chief Justice said the exercise of archiving judicial records would be taken up initially for the High Court and the district court at Cuttack. Based on the outcome, it could be implemented in the rest of the district courts in Odisha, he said.