Two-day strike by lawyers ends BCI Chairman thanks entire legal fraternity for its solidarity

The two-day strike organised by the Bar Council of India (BCI) to protest, amongst other things, the Higher Education and Research Bill, 2011 came to an end today. A press note released by the BCI Chairman, MK Mishra sought to thank the “entire legal fraternity” and the people of their country for “showing their solidarity with the Lawyer’s Bodies”..The two-day strike organised by the Bar Council of India (BCI) to protest, amongst other things, the Higher Education and Research Bill, 2011 came to an end today. A press note released by the BCI Chairman, MK Mishra sought to thank the “entire legal fraternity” and the people of their country for “showing their solidarity with the Lawyer’s Bodies”..The strike was largely effective in several parts of the country. The lower courts of Mumbai along with various Tribunals were bereft of lawyers, with a similar scene witnessed in various courts across the State and the High Court of Bombay as well. Lawyers in Rajasthan also chose to abstain from appearing in court. Reports from Orissa state that groups of lawyers assembled near various courts and “raised slogans” against HRD Minister, Kapil Sibal..Commenting on the decision to go on strike, the BCI stated that this method was resorted to only in the “rarest of rare cases”. The purpose of the strike was to draw the attention of the Parliament towards the BCI’s opposition to the Higher Education & Research Bill, 2011 and other Bills such as the Foreign Educational Institutions (Regulation of Entry and Operations) Bill, 2010. The BCI states that such proposed legislation shall “lower the standards of legal education and research work on Indian laws”..Interestingly, the BCI press note also stated that the Supreme Court Bar Association had been granted an exemption from participating in the strike “under the special circumstances”. At the same time, the note also thanked the SCBA for displaying their solidarity by “putting white ribbon over their black coat”.