Litigants, Court Staff, and Advocates Recently Protested the Lack of a Bus Stop at the Renovated Combined Court Complex | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
The lack of a bus stop at the renovated combined court complex in Murugapady village near Polur town in Tiruvannamalai district is forcing a portion of the litigants to walk at least 6 km from Polur town to get to court.
Buses, including those operated by the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC), do not stop at the court complex on the Cuddalore-Chittoor highway as there is no permanent bus stand there. Currently, the buses stop at the terminal in the city of Polur, at a distance of about 6 km from the court. Litigants, court staff, and lawyers have to ride autorickshaws or walk to get to court every day. “Even the court magistrates, who come from Vellore by bus, have to rent an autorickshaw in Polur town to get to the court. Poor litigants just walk from town to court,” said VC Dinakaran, former president of the Polur Bar Association.
More than 100 court staff members and 150 advocates travel by autorickshaw in small groups or on two-wheelers to court each day.
Every day, on average, more than 500 litigants from remote villages in Polur and district Kalasapakkam taluks visit the court complex, which comprises the judicial magistrate’s court, municipal district court and a sub-court. The Polur and Kalasapakkam taluks have 196 villages and 46 villages below them, respectively.
Before the opening of the secondary court last year, litigants had to travel to the towns of Arani or Tiruvannamalai, some 60 km from the villages in these taluks, to go to the secondary court there. Now, the facility is available in the judicial complex near the town of Polur, but without access to public transportation.
Court officials said a series of meetings were held between advocates, court staff, revenue officials and TNSTC to stop the buses at the court complex. A month ago, Revenue Division Officer (RDO), Tiruvannamalai, ordered the stoppage of all buses in the court complex. A group of lawyers and litigants had even blocked the main road to highlight their situation a few days ago. “According to revenue collection, only the town of Polur and the village of Keelur, at a distance of about 15 km, have bus stops. The Collector must decide a new bus stop,” said S. Natesan, Deputy General Manager, TNSTC, Tiruvannamalai. The Hindu.
