The state’s highest judicial power is the High Court. As stated in Article 214 of the Indian constitution, Each Indian state is required to have a High Court. Article 231 does, however, note that a common High Court for two or more states, or two or more states and a union territory, may exist. The number of High Courts in India should be known by the aspirants of all competitive exams.
In India, there are 25 high courts, six of which have jurisdiction over several states or union territories. Among the Union Territories, the capital of India: New Delhi has its own High Court. A Chief Justice and other judges appointed by the President of India compose each High Court.
| List of High Courts in India | |||
| Year | Name | Territorial Jurisdiction | Seat & Bench |
| 1862 | Bombay | MaharashtraDadra & Nagar Haveli and Daman DiuGoa | Seat: MumbaiBench: Panaji, Aurangabad, and Nagpur |
| 1862 | Kolkata | West BengalAndaman & Nicobar islands | Seat: KolkataBench: Port Blair |
| 1862 | Madras | Tamil NaduPondicherry | Seat: ChennaiBench: Madurai |
| 1866 | Allahabad | Uttar Pradesh | Seat: AllahabadBench: Lucknow |
| 1884 | Karnataka | Karnataka | Seat: BengaluruBench: Dharwad and Gulbarga |
| 1916 | Patna | Bihar | Patna |
| 1948 | Guwahati | AssamNagalandMizoramArunachal Pradesh | Seat: GuwahatiBench: Kohima, Aizawl, and Itanagar |
| 1949 | Odisha | Odisha | Cuttack |
| 1949 | Rajasthan | Rajasthan | Seat: JodhpurBench: Jaipur |
| 1956 | Madhya Pradesh | Madhya Pradesh | Seat: JabalpurBench: Gwalior and Indore |
| 1958 | Kerala | Kerala & Lakshadweep | Ernakulam |
| 1960 | Gujarat | Gujarat | Ahmedabad |
| 1966 | Delhi | Delhi | Delhi |
| 1971 | Himachal Pradesh | Himachal Pradesh | Shimla |
| 1975 | Punjab & Haryana | Punjab, Haryana & Chandigarh | Chandigarh |
| 1975 | Sikkim | Sikkim | Gangtok |
| 2000 | Chattisgarh | Chattisgarh | Bilaspur |
| 2000 | Uttarakhand | Uttarakhand | Nainital |
| 2000 | Jharkhand | Jharkhand | Ranchi |
| 2013 | Tripura | Tripura | Agartala |
| 2013 | Manipur | Manipur | Imphal |
| 2013 | Meghalaya | Meghalaya | Shillong |
| 2019 | Telangana | Telangana | Hyderabad |
| 2019 | Andhra Pradesh | Andhra Pradesh | Amravati |
| 2019 | Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh(Note: In 1928, Jammu & Kashmir high court was established. Post-bi-furcation of J&K into two union territories; there is now a common high court.) | Jammu and KashmirLadakh | – |
High Courts in India
The High Court’s Structure
- A Chief Justice and other judges are named by the President to each High Court
- For the High Courts, there is no set number of judges. It differs from one court to the next and from one state to the next.
Tenure and Qualifications
- An individual cannot be appointed as a High Court Judge unless he or she is a citizen of India
- For ten years, he should have held a judicial role in India’s territory
- He has been an advocate of one or more High Courts for at least ten years
Powers and Functions of the High Court
In India, the High Court is the highest court in each state. The High Courts, their organization, and powers are discussed in Articles 214 to 231 of the Indian Constitution. The Parliament may also create a single High Court that serves two or more states.
For example, Haryana, Punjab, and the Union Territory of Chandigarh share a common High Court. BesidesIn addition, the Northeastern states have a single High Court. AlsoIn addition, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry share a common High Court. Cite the example of Maharashtra and Daman and Diu.
High Court Jurisdiction
The following is an overview of the High Court’s different types of jurisdiction:
Original Jurisdiction: it means that the applicant can directly go to High Court and not by means of appeals. This power is used in the following matters –
- Disputes arising out of relating to members of Parliament and state legislative assembly
- Relating to marriage, law, admiralty divorce, contempt of court, etc
- Enforcement of fundamental rights (Supreme Court also has this power)
- Cases transferred from other courts to themselves which involves a question of law
Appellate Jurisdiction
- In civil cases: a district court ruling may be appealed to the High Court.
- If the disagreement is over Rs. 5000/- or concerns a matter of fact or law, an appeal may be taken directly from the subordinate court
- It also applies to cases decided by Sessions and Additional Sessions Judges in criminal cases: If the session judge has sentenced anyone to seven years or more in jail
Whether a session judge has ruled in favor of capital punishment
- The High Court has authority over all lawsuits arising under state or federal law
- If the High Court certifies that a case contains a substantial question of law in a constitutional case
High Court Powers
As Court of Record:
- High Courts are also Courts of Record (like the Supreme Court)
- Subordinate courts may use the records of High Court judgments to make decisions in cases
- All High Courts have the authority to punish anyone or any organization for contempt of
Administrative Powers
- Supervises and monitors all the lower courts
- Has the authority to request information of proceedings from lower courts
- Establishes guidelines for the operation of the subordinate courts
- It has the power to move cases from one court to another, as well as to transfer cases to itself and rule on them
- The authority to investigate any subordinate court’s records or other related documents
- Also has the authority to hire its administrative staff and set their wages, allowances, and working conditions
Power of Judicial Review: High Courts have the power of judicial review. If a law or ordinance is found to be illegal under the Indian Constitution, they have the authority to declare it unconstitutional.
Important Terms related to High Courts in India
Tribunal: Whether or not it is called a tribunal in its title, a tribunal is a word for someone operating in a judicial capacity. For example, an advocate standing before a Court with only one Judge could refer to that judge as “their tribunal.”
Permanent Bench: A permanent bench is made up of one or more High Court judges who sit all year at a different venue than the High Court’s permanent seat.
Circuit Bench: A Circuit Bench is for jurisdictions that are spread out but don’t have enough cases to warrant a full-fledged permanent bench. As a result, certain judges fly to these areas once or twice a year to hear all of the High Court appeals in that jurisdiction.
Division Bench: An argument is heard and judged by at least two judges in a Division Bench.
Full Bench: A full bench applies to a court of law with a larger number of judges than normal.
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