No Sub-Judge Court in Chowari despite Chief Minister’s assurance

Residents of the Bhatiyat Assembly constituency in neighbouring Chamba district have expressed resentment over the delay in the establishment of a Sub-Judge Court at Chowari, as promised by Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu in 2024.

Though Chowari subdivision was created in 1997, successive state governments, including the present Congress regime, did not set up a court despite repeated assurances from Chief Ministers.

Thousands of litigants from the constituency have to travel 100 km to 150 km (to and fro) to attend court proceedings at Dalhousie. Litigants Hitesh Bedi and Sandeep Verma say that travelling such a long distance through hilly terrain to file cases or attend hearings is both cumbersome and costly. “Covering 100 km to 150 km in one day in hilly areas leads to the wastage of time and money,” they add.

At present, Sub-Judge Courts are functioning at Chamba, Dalhousie and Tissa, while Chowari subdivision, having a population of around 1.15 lakh, is without the facility. The Bhatiyat Assembly constituency stretches from Hatli near Shahpur in Kangra district to Nainikhad on the one side and up to Jot near Chamba on the other, encompassing difficult hilly terrain. The travel to Dalhousie becomes particularly arduous during the winter and the monsoon, especially for litigants from economically-weaker sections of society.

Abhishek Thakur, a resident of Chowari, says that the demand for a Sub-Judge Court was first raised during the tenure of the Prem Kumar Dhumal government (2003-2007). “Dhumal had assured people that he would consider a circuit court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate at Chowari. Later, incumbent Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu during a visit to Chowari on March 11, 2024, assured people that a court would be opened after obtaining the required permission from the High Court of Himachal Pradesh. However, even after two years, nothing has materialised,” he adds.

Local advocates Rajgopal Kaushal, Ashish Sharma and Dev Singh say that subdivisions such as Jawali, Indora and Fatehpur in the lower Kangra region created after Chowari subdivision already have functional Sub-Judge Courts. They allege that Chowari has been consistently neglected and demand immediate establishment of a court in the larger public interest.