The Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled that there is no need for setting up a permanent bench of Orissa High Court in Sambalpur. It also condemned the action of the lawyers who have been agitating on the demand for a permanent bench of the high court in the western Odisha city.

The apex court said that technology has made the demand redundant. “The passage of time and the use of technology has made the demand obsolete. The use of technology is quite widespread now during the hearing of cases and being monitored by Orissa High Court. There is no need for an additional bench,” the apex court observed.

The bench comprising Justice S.K. Kaul and Abhay S. Oka also pointed out that the high court was also hearing the petitions virtually filed by district courts. Senior Supreme Court lawyer Gautam Das said that the apex court made it clear that digitization has made filing cases in the high court from any part of the state quite easy.

The Supreme Court was annoyed by the conduct of the lawyers, particularly the way they ransacked the premises of some local courts in Sambalpur and obstructed their proceedings.

It also observed that if there was any possibility of setting up the bench, it got vanished because of the conduct of the lawyers. The court observed that the sanctity of courts must be maintained by ensuring complete peace and functionality.

The apex court on Monday criticised the Odisha police for its failure to deal with the lawyers’ agitation effectively and had even threatened to deploy central forces in the state in the event of police failing to discharge its duty.