2017-11-01 Wed

There are 24 High Courts at the state and union territory level of India, which together with the Supreme Court of India at the national level, comprise the country's judicial system. Each High Court has jurisdiction over a state, a union territory or a group of states and union territories.

High Courts are instituted as constitutional courts under Part VI, Chapter V, Article 214 of the Indian Constitution, which state that there shall be a High Court for each state.

The Calcutta High Court is the oldest High Court in the country, established on 1 July 1862.

The High Court at Calcutta, formerly known as the High Court of Judicature at Fort William, was constituted under a latter patent issued on May 14, 1862. It was formally inaugurated on July 1, 1862, with Sir Barnes Peacock as its first Chief Justice.

The Calcutta High Court has the distinction of being the first High Court and one of the three Chartered High Courts to be set up in India, along with the High Courts of Bombay and Madras. It has jurisdiction over the state of West Bengal and Union Territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Island.

Despite the name of the city has officially changed from Calcutta to Kolkata in 2001, the high, as an institution retained the old name.

India post has issued a 15 paisa commemorative postage stamp on the centenary of the Calcutta High Court.