Chandigarh, December 1
Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda said here today that it was the constitutional right of the people of the state to have a high court of their own in Chandigarh, which was the capital of the state.

Hooda was reacting to a letter written by Punjab Chief Minister Prakash Singh Badal to Union Law Minister Veerappa Moily opposing a separate HC for Haryana in Chandigarh.

He said there was no legal hitch in setting up a separate HC for Haryana at Chandigarh as the legislature of the state was also located in the city.

Hooda said if the Haryana High Court was to be located in the territory of the state, then the same logic should also apply to Punjab as well. The Assembly and Secretariat buildings in Chandigarh were also bifurcated between Punjab and Haryana and the arrangement was working very well. On the same analogy, he said, the present HC building at Chandigarh could be bifurcated between Punjab and Haryana.

He said the Haryanavis were being denied their constitutional right to have a separate HC. The states such as Jharkhand, Chhattisgarh and Uttarakhand, which had come much later in existence than Haryana, had already set up their respective high courts.

Hooda said a separate HC for the state could conveniently be set up at Chandigarh in the existing building of the Punjab and Haryana High Court by allocating to Haryana 40 per cent of the premises along with the judges appointed against the quota of Haryana. Similarly, the other staff could also be bifurcated.

Hooda said the Haryana Assembly had unanimously adopted a resolution on December 15, 2005, regarding a separate HC for the state in Chandigarh. The resolution said the Union government might move an appropriate Bill for carrying out suitable amendment in the Punjab Reorganisation Act, 1966, and provide for a separate HC of Haryana to be located in Chandigarh, the capital of the state. This was followed by his demi-official letter to the Union Law Minister on January 13, 2006 in this regard. He said with the creation of a separate HC for Haryana, disposal of cases would be much faster and judicial system would also be further strengthened, paving the way for a quicker justice to the people of the state.

Hooda urged Badal to treat Haryana as a younger brother instead of depriving it of its legitimate rights in the capital city of Chandigarh.Meanwhile, Haryana PWD, Public Health and Parliamentary Minister Randeep Singh Surjewala said the statement given by the Punjab Chief Minister shows his narrow mindedness. Talking to mediapersons here today, Randeep said it sounds strange that the Punjab CM has asked for shifting of Haryana offices out of Chandigarh despite the fact that all its expenses were met by the Union government and not by any individual state.