Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi seeking the establishment of a permanent regional bench of the Supreme Court in Chennai. The demand is aimed at improving access to justice for litigants from southern States, who often have to travel to New Delhi to pursue matters before the apex court. The proposal seeks to make the Supreme Court more accessible geographically and financially to litigants who cannot afford the expenses associated with litigation in the national capital.

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Article 130 of the Constitution provides that the Supreme Court shall sit in Delhi or at such other place or places as the Chief Justice of India may, with the President’s approval, appoint. The proposal for regional benches has been raised previously, including by the Law Commission in its 229th Report (2009), which recommended a Constitution Bench at Delhi and four regional Cassation Benches at Delhi, Chennai/Hyderabad, Kolkata and Mumbai. However, the Supreme Court Full Court had earlier found no justification for establishing benches outside Delhi.