MOHANRAJ R

Review of Madras High Court

Centuries before India's independence, the British...

Centuries before India's independence, the British government established courts in India. The Chennai High Court is one of the three such courts. The other two courts were established in Mumbai and the other in Kolkata. [4] The Chennai High Court was established on June 26, 1862, as one of the three High Courts of India (the others Mumbai, Kolkata), under a patent granted by the Victorian Empire to the city of Rajdhani, Chennai. Its jurisdiction covers Tamil Nadu and Puthuvai (Pondicherry).

Initially, it was called the 'Supreme Court of Madras'. The High Court then drafted the Bill, renaming it 'Madras High Court' on 15 August 1862. The Chennai High Court was located in the guava grove (George Town) in front of the present Chennai High Court building. The current High Court building was built after British Judge Holly Harmon approved Queen Victoria's request for a separate building for the High Court.

When Madras was legally renamed Chennai in 1996, the High Court exempted it and renamed it the Madras High Court for its traditional glory. [6] In July 2016, the Union Cabinet approved the renaming of the Madras High Court as the Chennai High Court. [7].

The other two of the three High Courts set up along with it were the Mumbai and Kolkata Courts, which functioned as the Supreme Courts until before the 1861 High Court Act.