Lawyers' strikes: Supreme Court directs formation of committees for all High Courts to redress lawyers' grievances

The Supreme Court on Thursday directed the formation of a grievance redressal committees at the High Court level for lawyers to ventilate their grievances [District Bar Association Dehradun v. Ishwar Shandilya and Ors.]..A bench of Justices MR Shah and Ahsanuddin Amanullah emphasised that strikes by bar associations have time and again resulted in the disruption of judicial work and noted that if any bar member has any genuine grievances, there should be a forum where the such bar can ventilate them.Therefore, the Court directed the formation of grievance redressal committees at the High Court level, which will consist of the Chief Justice, and two senior judges of the concerned High Court of which one has to be from the bar and the other from service (district judiciary).The bar-nominee is to be chosen by a panel comprising the Chief Justice, the State Advocate General, the chairperson of the State Bar Council, and the president of the High Court Bar Association."We once again reiterate that no member of the Bar can go on strike and/or abstain himself from court working. Time and again, this Court has emphasised and criticized the advocates going on strike and abstaining them from work. If the member of the Bar has any genuine grievance or the difficulty ... they can very well make a representation and it is appropriate that their genuine grievances are considered by some forum so that such strikes can be avoided and members of the Bar who might have genuine grievances like above may ventilate their grievances," the Court said..The Registry was directed to circulate the order to all High Courts. "The High Court may also consider to constitute the similar Grievance Redressal Committee at the District Court level", the bench added..The order was passed after an application was filed by the Bar Council of India in this regard, for such commitees upto the district and taluka levels.That application was filed in a case concerning the practice of strikes and boycotting of courts being called for by three District Bar Associations of Uttarakhand on every working Saturday.The practice has been going on in Dehradun, Haridwar and Udham Singh Nagar District Bar Associations for as many as 35 years, the petitioners had contended.In 2020, the top court had ruled that the same cannot be justified, and is not protected under the freedom of speech and exepression under Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution.The Court had criticised the district bar associations for carrying on this practice for 35 years, noting that the ultimate sufferer of these strikes is the litigant..The Bar Council of India was represented by its Chairperson, Senior Advocate Manan Kumar Mishra.[Read order]