India News | SC Expects BCI to Take Appropriate Action Against Agitating Lawyers in Odisha
Get latest articles and stories on India at LatestLY. The Supreme Court on Monday expressed displeasure over the agitation by members of bar associations in some districts of Odisha and said it expects the Bar Council of India to take appropriate action, including suspension of licences.
New Delhi, Nov 28 (PTI) The Supreme Court on Monday expressed displeasure over the agitation by members of bar associations in some districts of Odisha and said it expects the Bar Council of India to take appropriate action, including suspension of licences.
Observing that the agitating lawyers have to resume work, the apex court said though one of the issues for the protest is the demand for establishment of a permanent bench of the Orissa High Court in western Odisha, high court benches cannot be at the "doorsteps".
"What is the core issue? Every district wants high court benches?" a bench of Justices S K Kaul and A S Oka observed, adding, "You can have district judiciary at your doorsteps, you cannot have a high court at your doorsteps."
"It cannot be done. Odisha is not such a big state," it said.
The apex court was hearing an application filed by the registrar general of the Orissa High Court which has said that abstention of work by members of the bar associations in several districts has seriously hampered the judicial work in the subordinate courts of the state.
It had on November 14 asked the agitating members of the bar associations to resume work by November 16.
During the hearing on Monday, the bench perused the supplementary affidavit filed by the high court's registrar general which said that the agitation and picketing continued in some areas of the state.
"If you (agitating lawyers) do not want to work, you leave the profession," the bench observed, adding, "The court work cannot stop".
The bench termed as "intolerable" the conduct of lawyers who are holding the agitation which is disrupting the functioning of the district courts there.
It noted that despite its observations on November 14, the agitation and picketing continued in some districts.
"We had already cautioned the bar associations on many occasion in the earlier proceedings as well on the last occasion that if they fail to conduct themselves as members of this nobel profession, they lose any protection," it said.
"If leaders of the bar associations in Odisha seek to invite action, we will have to oblige them," the bench said.
It noted that the Bar Council of India (BCI) is represented before it in the matter.
"We would expect the BCI to take appropriate action against members of the different bar associations and logically, we would expect their licences to be suspended at least till the work is resumed," the bench said.
The apex court said it expects the police to provide full proof arrangements for ingress and egress of the judicial officers, willing members of the bar and also the litigants.
It said appropriate steps, including preventive arrest or otherwise, as required may be taken by the administration.
The bench, which posted the matter for hearing on December 12, said it is the administration's duty and obligation to see that courts are functional.
"Hundred per cent work has to be resumed. There is no other option," the bench said, adding, "If you do not get back to work, you will face the consequences."
While hearing the matter on November 14, the bench had observed that access to justice is the very foundation of a legal system.
It had observed that the top court had passed an order in February 2020 and an undertaking was given before it that all the district bar associations in Odisha would resume work on that day itself.
(The above story is verified and authored by Press Trust of India (PTI) staff. PTI, India’s premier news agency, employs more than 400 journalists and 500 stringers to cover almost every district and small town in India.. The views appearing in the above post do not reflect the opinions of LatestLY)