A group of young lawyers practicing at the Andhra Pradesh High Court have written to the leadership of the High Court Advocates’ Association expressing strong disagreement with the May 6 resolution passed by the bar body in the wake of the controversy over a judge’s threat to send a junior lawyer to police custody.
The letter written on Thursday has taken exception to the Advocates Association’s position that the matter had been “amicably settled".
The communication by the young lawyers said that the resolution does not reflect the views of younger members of the Bar.
"We are not fighting judiciary as a whole; instead we are seeking strengthening the Bar and Bench relation. The Executive Committee of the Bar Association, in a hurry, passed a resolution and a press statement which do not reflect the view of the members of the Bar. Therefore, we beg to differ from your stand and state that we unequivocally condemn the act," said the letter.
The controversy stemmed from a hearing before the High Court on May 4, where a petition challenging a look out circular and passport impounding was listed.
During the proceedings, Justice Tarlada Rajasekhar Rao took exception to the conduct of the advocate representing the petitioner, after he allegedly dropped a file loudly in court. The judge rebuked the lawyer and remarked that he had behaved “indolently” and questioned whether he considered himself a “great Senior Advocate”.
A video clip of the exchange, which went viral, showed the advocate apologising and pleading for leniency, stating that he was in pain and “begging for grace” with folded hands. Despite this, the judge directed police personnel to take him into custody for 24 hours.
Sources later told the Bar & Bench that following an intervention of the High Court Bar Association, the Court later cancelled the order to send the lawyer to police custody.
However, after the incident came to light, the Bar Council of India (BCI) and the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) passed resolutions condemning the incident and seeking action.
In response to that, the AP High Court Advocates' Association then passed a resolution stating that the resolutions passed by the other two bar bodies, BCI and SCBA, were done hastily and without adequate inquiry and could affect the relations between the bar and the bench.
Young lawyers have now taken exception to this stance of the the AP High Court Advocates' Association.
They underscored concerns about proportionality and fairness, arguing that even if the advocate’s conduct warranted correction, the response ought to have been measured and in accordance with established procedure.
"It is also glaringly evident in the video clipping that the young advocate with folded hands begged for the Learned Judge’s grace and mercy and apologized profusely. Sending an advocate directly to judicial custody/prison without giving him an opportunity of being heard just for dropping a file, cannot be accepted under any premise. If the Learned Judge, for any reason, was of the opinion that the conduct of an advocate appeared to be indolent, there were alternate ways of handling the issue," said the letter.
The junior members have sought the withdrawal of the May 6 resolution and urged the High Court Advocates' Association to issue an unequivocal condemnation of the incident.
They have also called for convening a general body meeting to deliberate on the challenges faced by young advocates and to place those concerns before the High Court for institutional redress.
They further demanded the constitution of an enquiry committee to examine reports that a member of the Bar Council of Andhra Pradesh suggested humiliating measures against the advocate, including asking him to kneel before the judge or be slapped.
"We are of the collective opinion that this suggestion reflects that the said member is not eligible to hold the current post and represent the interests of the Council which includes all of us," said the junior lawyers.