By Arun Pratap Singh
Garhwal Post Bureau
Nainital, 21 Aug: The Uttarakhand High Court today held a final hearing on the petitions challenging the proposed transfer of the High Court from Nainital to Haldwani’s Bel Baba area and the reservation of forest land without prior approval of the Central Government. The division bench comprising Justice Manoj Kumar Tiwari and Justice Pankaj Purohit, heard detailed arguments from all the sides and then reserved its judgment today.
During the hearing on the plea against shifting the High Court from Nainital to Haldwani, the petitioners raised the issue of the original concept of a hill state. Through their lawyers, they argued that the primary objective of creating the state was the development of the hills. They argued that in case the High Court has to be shifted from Nainital, it should be relocated to another hill region rather than to the plains. The Petitioners contended that the move to shift the court from Nainital to Haldwani undermines the very purpose of Uttarakhand’s formation.
Advocate Raman Shah, a petitioner and statehood activist, informed the court that the proposal prepared by the District Magistrate of Nainital for reserving forest land near Bel Baba temple for the High Court violates Section 2 of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980. The petition also alleged that the officials responsible for such violations should face action. It was further claimed that the proposal was prepared in May 2026 despite the Supreme Court’s stay order being in force at that time. The petition also highlighted that the identified area has extensive plantations and falls within an elephant corridor.
The petition emphasised that the transfer of land without mandatory approval of the Central Government is illegal. It referred to the Supreme Court’s order dated 15 July 2026 and the Uttarakhand Government’s notification of 12 August 2026, both of which recognised the land as ‘forest land’. They reminded that under the strict provisions of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, only the Union Government has the authority to de-reserve or alter the status of reserved forest land, not the state government or any other authority. Hence, the transfer of land without central clearance is entirely unlawful.
In response, the legal counsels representing the state government strongly refuted these arguments. They stated that the process of shifting the High Court is proceeding as per rules. The government maintained that the proposed site is not part of any elephant corridor. However, the petitioners and other lawyers questioned the government’s intent, arguing that when the Supreme Court had directed the identification of suitable land anywhere in Nainital district, the government’s insistence on shifting the High Court only to Haldwani raises doubts, especially when other alternatives exist. After recording all the arguments, the division bench has reserved its final decision and it is not yet known when the judgement will be made public and announced by the court.
