TRS Leader And Former MP B Vinod Kumar Demands Supreme Court Bench In South India

Welcoming the increase in Supreme Court (SC) strength from 31 to 34 as approved by the Cabinet on Wednesday (31 July), former MP and senior Telangana Rastra Samiti (TRS) leader B Vinod Kumar has demanded that a SC bench be set up in South India, preferably Hyderabad, Hans India has reported.

Kumar has said that outside of North Zone, the highest number of appeals to the SC were filed from South India. However, he said that lesser number of cases were appealed due to the distance factor which constitutes a contradiction to the right to access justice.

“The Delhi HC, in 2006, 2007 and 2011, had an average appeal rate of 9.3 per cent. The Uttarakhand, Punjab and Haryana High Courts, all located close to Delhi, too had appeal rates of over 4. Madras had an appealing rate of just 1.1 per cent, Orissa less than 1 per cent,” he said.

While lauding the decision to increase the SC strength he said that 58,669 cases were currently pending in the apex court and that the strength should be further increased. Kumar recalled that he had brought in a private member bill to increase the strength to 42 earlier when he was an MP.