Located on the western side of the Nyay Mandir, is a huge red building called the Lal Court.It was built during the 1950s and it is said that the site where it now stands, there used to be a garden. The building used to house Diwani and Faujdaari Court as well as a mediation center and was probably built to reduce the increasing load on the old court i.e. the Nyay Mandir. Currently vacant, the courts of the building along with that of the Nyay Mandir were recently shifted to a new court complex away from the center of the old city.
The Building :
Much in contrast with it’s precursor, this 3 storeyed building is almost austere and devoid of a lot of ornamentation. The building is almost semi-circular in shape and has a courtyard on the rear side. It is entered through a huge arched entrance gateway, the upper half of which resembles a huge niche adorned with “Jali” work on the back side. There is band of wall which runs across the arch almost midway through the gateway, which bears the name plaque of the court. This gateway is flanked by two windows with “Jali” work on either side.
The exterior of the building shows exposed brick work, hence the name Lal Court (Lal in gujarati means red !). This red facade is broken into horizontal portions by contrasting ivory bands running across the whole facade, demarcating the floors of the building. These horizontal portions are further broken by evenly spaced windows, sitting on ivory sills. The building is decorated by using using only a few elements such as the two small “chattris” /cupolas sitting atop the main entrance or the two other chattris, one on each of the two alternate entry or exit. Apart from this, there is “chajja” running along the floor line of the second floor, supported on small brackets.
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Now vacant, the fate of this building currently lies in the hands of the legal authorities of the state.
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