CJI to Lay Foundation Stone for North Guwahati Judicial Complex Amid Lawyers’ Protest

Chief Justice of India Surya Kant is set to lay the foundation stone for an integrated Judicial Court Complex at Rangmahal in Assam’s North Guwahati on January 11. The project is being described by officials as a major expansion of the state’s judicial infrastructure, envisioned as a modern judicial city.

Spread over 148 bighas (approximately 48 acres), the first phase of the complex is estimated to cost around Rs 479 crore. It will house the Gauhati High Court, district court buildings, and a host of integrated facilities aimed at improving access to justice and expediting case disposal.

The Chief Justice arrived in Guwahati on Saturday evening and attended a cultural programme and dinner hosted in his honour. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma and several dignitaries were present at the event.

However, the foundation-laying ceremony comes amid opposition from sections of the legal fraternity. The Gauhati High Court Bar Association has announced a four-hour hunger strike from 10 am on Sunday, protesting the proposed relocation of the high court to the new site.

Similarly, the Guwahati Lawyers’ Association has voiced strong objections to the unilateral decision to transfer the high court. The association has also protested the proposed relocation of the Chief Judicial Magistrate’s court and the plan to demolish its 140-year-old office in Guwahati. Lawyers have been observing a hunger strike since morning to press their demands.

Responding to the protests, Assam Advocate General Devajit Saikia criticised the association, alleging that a “nexus with political parties” was behind the agitation.

Currently, the Gauhati High Court operates from Uzan Bazar in central Guwahati on the southern bank of the Brahmaputra. The campus includes a heritage building and a modern multi-storey structure, connected by an underground tunnel with escalators.

Officials said the state government’s plan to redevelop the Brahmaputra riverfront requires acquisition of the existing high court land, which has fueled controversy over the proposed shift to North Guwahati.

Also Read: “I Look at the High Court Shift with Hope, Not Despair”: CM Himanta Biswa Sarma