HC complex: Law dept files plea seeking review of order

PANJIM, JULY 2
The Law Department of the State Government has filed a writ petition before Bombay High Court at Goa seeking review of the December 16, 2009 order of the High Court wherein the government was directed to commence construction of the proposed High Court complex at Porvorim within a period of three months.
The petition was taken up for hearing by a Division Bench of Justice N A Britto and Justice F M Ries on Friday afternoon and notices were issued to respondents and hearing was posted for further hearing after two weeks.
Land admeasuring 22,898 square meters was given to law and judiciary department in 1996 for the construction of court complex. The government did not take any initiative in building proposed High Court complex even as the need for additional courts was felt with the increasing number of litigations.
A division bench comprising then chief justice Swatanter Kumar and Justice N A Britto had directed the government to commence the construction of the building within three months from the date of the order.
The Court in its December order had also expressly prohibited the government from handing over possession of the land to any other department or to a corporate body.
“It appears that some pressure is being exerted by some interested persons from the political field and government land is sought to be utilised for the purposes other than the specified purpose,” had remarked Division Bench in its order.