Karnataka High Court

Powers and jurisdiction

The High Court is the highest judicial authority within the State of Karnataka. It has superintendence over all courts and tribunals, such as district courts, operating within Karnataka, except those of the armed forces. Appeals against judgments of lower courts, such as district-level civil and sessions courts, are heard in the High Court. Appeals against judgments of the High Court are heard by the Supreme Court of India.

The High Court is a court of record and has the authority to prosecute for contempt of itself.

The Karnataka High Court has permanent benches at Hubballi-Dharwada (operational on 24 August 2013) and Kalaburagi (operational on 31 August 2013). Prior to the establishment of permanent benches, Hubballi-Dharwada and Kalaburagi had circuit benches of Karnataka High Court starting in 2008. The Hubballi-Dharwada bench was inaugurated by then Chief Justice of India K.G. Balakrishnan on 4 July 2008 and became operational on 7 July 2008.

Premises

The High Court's principal bench is located in Bengaluru, in a building called the Attara Kacheri. It is a two-storey building made of stone and brick, painted red, in the neoclassical style. The building was constructed between 1864 and 1868 and is located in Bengaluru's Cubbon Park.

In 1982, it was proposed to demolish this building. A public interest litigation (PIL) was filed in the High Court to prevent demolition. This was the first PIL ever filed in the court, and the case was heard in the same building that was supposed to be demolished. The petition was dismissed by the High Court, but in 1985 the proposal to demolish the building was dropped after the Supreme Court directed the state government to reconsider demolition.

Heritage

Lord Cubbon, the then Viceroy of Colonial India was responsible for building Attara Kacheri. The building features Greco-Roman styled architecture with red paint and a sprawling expansive layout, marked by a distinguished central structure. A portion of the High Court building served as Attara Kacheri, during the Mysore Kingdom era, housing various public offices.

The entrance of the Attara Kacheri building now faces the side opposite to the Vidhana Soudha, which was originally the rear side of the former Attara Kacheri. Over a hundred years later, when the building became the High Court, it began to show signs of age and wear. This led to the proposal for its demolition during the tenure of Kengal Hanumanthaiah and again in 1984, when there was a plan to replace it with a new structure. These proposals faced significant protests from citizens who opposed dismantling the colonial-era building.

A Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed, but the High Court dismissed the petition. The case was subsequently taken to the Supreme Court. In consideration of the public concerns, the government decided not to demolish the building but instead to renovate and expand it to meet modern needs. The government of Karnataka assigned the task to the engineers of the Public Works Department (PWD). Preparations began in 1986 to renovate the old structure and add a new parallel block, designed in the same style as the original Attara Kacheri.

In 1990s, the Karnataka Government successfully rejuvenated the Attara Kacheri building, adding new blocks alongside the existing structure. The old building was reinforced to accommodate the updated requirements. The Northern Block was formally Inaugurated by Lokayuktha Venkatachala, with a plaque installed during the event.

Chief Justice and Judges

The current sitting judges of the court are as follows:

List of Chief Justices

P. Mahadevayya, M. Sadasivayya, Nittoor Srinivasa Rau, Sam Piroj Bharucha and G. T. Nanavati were among the notable Chief Justices who presided over this court.

List of former Chief Justices

High Court of Mysore

High Court of Karnataka

Judges elevated as Chief Justices

This sections contains list of only those judges elevated as chief justices whose parent high court is Karnataka. This includes those judges who, at the time of appointment as chief justice, may not be serving in Karnataka High Court but this list does not include judges who at the time of appointment as chief justice were serving in Karnataka High Court but does not have Karnataka as their Parent High Court.

Judges appointed as Acting Chief Justice

Judges elevated to Supreme Court

This section includes the list of only those judges whose parent high court was Karnataka. This includes those judges who, at the time of elevation to Supreme Court of India, may not be serving in Karnataka High Court but this list does not include judges who at the time of elevation were serving in Karnataka High Court but does not have Karnataka as their Parent High Court.

Additional Benches

The Karnataka High Court currently operates in Bengaluru, Hubballi-Dharwada and Kalaburagi. For many years there was a demand for additional benches due to the difficulty faced by people from northern regions of the state, as Bengaluru is located in the southeastern corner. This issue led to agitation, including boycott of court proceedings by lawyers in the northern region. In response, the government decided to establish circuit benches in Hubballi-Dharwada and Kalaburagi in 2006. The new benches were inaugurated on 4 and 5 July 2008, respectively. Subsequently, there was a push to make both the Hubballi-Dharwada and Kalaburagi benches permanent. As a result, the Hubballi-Dharwadaa bench became permanent on from 25 August 2013, followed by the Kalaburagi bench on 31 August 2013.

Controversies

In late 2002, 14 newspapers and periodicals reported allegations of a sex scandal involving some judges of the Karnataka High Court in Mysore. In response, the Chief Justice formed a high-level judicial inquiry committee to investigate the matter. The committee later acquitted the judges, as no substantial evidence could be found to support the allegations.

As of 2023, approximately 2.7 lakh cases were pending in Karnataka High Court, which is facing a significant backlog. The court has struggled with delays due to challenges in adhering to the Karnataka Civil Procedure Code and delivering timely justice.

As of August 2024, approximately 20 Lakh cases are pending across the state, with the High Court serving as the final custodian of justice in these matters.