Allahabad High Court lawyers join nation-wide strike

Allahabad: Judicial work was paralysed at the Allahabad High Court today as advocates here joined a nationwide strike in protest against proposed amendments in the Advocates Act.

A meeting was held this morning in front of the main gate of the sprawling court premises where High Court Bar Association's vice-president Mangala Prasad Tripathi told lawyers "the Advocates (Amendment) Bill brought by Law Commission of India Chairman Justice B S Chauhan is draconian".

He said as per the proposed amendments "a judge or a judicial officer will be empowered to cancel the licence of a legal practitioner whom he holds guilty of indiscipline, without giving any opportunity for hearing to the advocate".

"The proposed amendments also recommend sweeping changes in the functioning of the Bar Council of India.

According to the Bill, more than half of the BCI members shall be nominated by a committee comprising a judge of the Supreme Court and the Central Vigilance Commissioner", Tripathi said.

"Similarly, for Bar Councils of states it has been recommended that more than half of their members be nominated by the respective High Courts and the members shall include those involved in professions other than law practice", he alleged.

"In protest against these draconian, anti-lawyer, unconstitutional moves, the Bar Council of India has called for a nation-wide strike today. We must rise to the occasion and offer full support to the agitation", he added.

Today's strike came three weeks after a similar boycott of judicial work called by the Bar Council of India on the same issue on March 31 last.

No untoward incident was reported during the agitation.