The Biju Janata Dal (BJD) MLAs from Western Odisha have demanded that the State Government should request the Centre to initiate steps for establishment of a bench of the High Court in the region.
In a memorandum to Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik, the MLAs requested him to intervene in the matter and request the High Court again to consider the genuine demand of the people of the region. The MLAs said they strongly support the ongoing agitation for the establishment of a bench of the High Court in Western Odisha.
The Chief Minister, on earlier occasions, had requested the Chief Justice of the High Court for establishment of the bench in Western Odisha, they said.
Referring to the ongoing agitation by the lawyers and common people, the MLAs said at the time of establishment of the High Court at Cuttack in 1948, the population of the State was 86 lakh, which has now crossed 4 crore. Besides, Western Odisha is inhabited by weaker sections of the society, including Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, agricultural workers and daily wagers who can ill afford to go to Cuttack to get justice, they said.