The District and Sessions Court of Mohali — officially known as the District and Sessions Court of Sahibzada Ajit Singh Nagar (SAS Nagar) — is one of Punjab’s newest and most progressive district courts, serving a district that was carved out of parts of Ropar and Patiala as the 18th district of Punjab on April 14, 2006. The district is officially named after Sahibzada Ajit Singh — the eldest son of the revered Sikh Guru Gobind Singh — making its very name a tribute of profound spiritual and cultural significance to the Sikh faith. Contiguous with the Union Territory of Chandigarh and emerging rapidly as North India’s most significant IT and technology hub, Mohali’s district court has grown from a single courtroom in a community centre to a fully equipped modern judicial complex at Sector 76 in under two decades — one of India’s most impressive examples of new district court infrastructure development.
History
The District and Sessions Court Mohali was earlier part of the Rupnagar (Ropar) Sessions Division. When the SAS Nagar district was formally created on April 14, 2006, the need for an independent judicial system became immediate. The court was established in 2006 with a single court functioning in a community centre complex of Phase 3-B1, Mohali — a limited space provided by civic authorities with the vision of serving the litigants in and around Mohali City.
The Judicial Courts of the newly formed SAS Nagar district were formally inaugurated by Acting Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court Sh. H.S. Bedi on July 23, 2006. Two courtrooms were temporarily housed in the community centre complex at that point. The court had a single Additional Civil Judge Senior Division-cum-SDJM, Ms. Poonam Ratti, as its first presiding officer. The first court of SDJM was opened in Mohali in July 2006 while the second court of Judicial Magistrate came here in March 2007.
Former Punjab and Haryana High Court Chief Justice Vijender Jain inaugurated Mohali’s first District Court on March 18, 2008 — a milestone that established the court as a full-fledged district-level institution. In the next five years, the formation of a new Sessions Division exclusively for Mohali was envisioned by the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The foundation for the existing Judicial Court Complex at Sector 76 was laid in 2013. The new Judicial Courts Complex was inaugurated by Punjab and Haryana High Court Justice T.P.S. Mann, Chairman of the Building Committee, and became fully functional in December 2015.
Structure and Composition
| Dimension | Detail |
| District created | April 14, 2006 — 18th district of Punjab |
| First court established | July 2006 — community centre Phase 3-B1 |
| First presiding officer | Ms. Poonam Ratti — Additional Civil Judge Sr. Division-cum-SDJM |
| First District Court inaugurated | March 18, 2008 — by CJ Vijender Jain, Punjab and Haryana HC |
| New complex foundation laid | 2013 |
| New complex functional | December 2015 |
| New complex location | Sector 76, SAS Nagar (Mohali), Punjab |
| New complex inaugurated by | Justice T.P.S. Mann — Punjab and Haryana HC |
| Site area | 14 acres |
| Built-up area | 4,31,600 sq ft |
| Ground coverage | 86,320 sq ft |
| No. of floors | G + 4 (five storeys) |
| Courtrooms | 23 — 19 functional as of complex inauguration |
| Lawyers’ chambers | 150 workable — first such integrated facility in Punjab court complexes |
| High Court supervision | Punjab and Haryana High Court, Chandigarh |
| District named after | Sahibzada Ajit Singh — eldest son of Guru Gobind Singh |
Architecture — A First-of-Its-Kind Complex in Punjab
The new Judicial Courts Complex at Sector 76, Mohali is architecturally distinguished for a feature that no other court complex in Punjab had implemented before — integrated lawyers’ chambers within the court building itself. The building incorporates 150 workable lawyer chambers, sharing a common corridor of 7 feet 9 inches width, making it a landmark innovation in Punjab’s judicial infrastructure that removed the traditional separation between court buildings and advocates’ chamber facilities.
The complex is designed symmetrically — two major blocks placed 125 feet apart, with setbacks of 150 feet on the front, 60 feet on the rear, and 60 and 100 feet on the sides. Located centrally in the district with road access on all four sides — the front road being a 150-foot-wide State Highway — the complex offers excellent connectivity from Mohali Railway Station (8.6 km) and Chandigarh ISBT (7.2 km). Six access gates provide organised entry for different categories of court users, maintaining security without creating bottlenecks.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: When was the Mohali District Court established?
A: 2006 — formally inaugurated July 23, 2006, by Acting Chief Justice H.S. Bedi, Punjab and Haryana HC.
Q: After whom is SAS Nagar district named?
A: Sahibzada Ajit Singh — the eldest son of Guru Gobind Singh.
Q: Where is the new court complex located?
A: Sector 76, SAS Nagar (Mohali), Punjab — on a 14-acre site.
Q: When did the new complex become functional?
A: December 2015.
Q: What makes the Mohali court complex unique in Punjab?
A: It was the first court complex in Punjab to have integrated lawyers’ chambers within the court building itself — 150 workable chambers.
Q: Who inaugurated the first District Court in Mohali?
A: Former Chief Justice of the Punjab and Haryana High Court Vijender Jain, on March 18, 2008.
Q: How many courtrooms does the new complex have?
A: 23 courtrooms on a G+4 structure with 4,31,600 sq ft built-up area.
