Bar Councils seek time to take stand on lawyers strike

The Bar Council of India and Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa today informed the Bombay High Court that as a matter of principle they did not support lawyers resorting to strike but needed time to take a stand on the subject.
They were replying to a question posed by the Court as to what was their stand in regard to the strike called by lawyers recently to demand a separate High Court bench in Kolhapur city to cater to Kolhapur and nearby districts.
The Court had earlier issued suo motu contempt notice to a group of lawyers who had gone on strike in Kolhapur and other places on the same issue.

The lawyers, against whom contempt notice was issued, had tendered an unconditional apology to HC in an affidavit. However, the Court asked the Bar Councils to take a stand.
Lawyer for Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa (BCMG) Rajendra Raghuvanshi told the court today that this issue will be placed before the BCMG committee and assured that it will communicate to the Court the decision taken in this regard.
Similar argument was advanced by Amit Sale who argued on behalf of Bar Council of India. Sale said the Bar Council would discuss the issue in a meeting in January 2014.

A bench headed by Justice Abhay Oka asked the BCMG to make a statement stating its stand on the issue of strike by lawyers. However, BCMG Counsel said they would first discuss the issue in the committee meeting and then inform the Court.

The Court adjourned the matter to February 10 to enable the Bar Councils inform their stand on the subject.
Earlier, another bench of HC, on October 15, in a suo motu action, had imposed costs of Rs 3,000 each on 13 lawyers and issued show cause notices to them for boycotting the courts.
The court had taken a serious note of lawyers going on strike and not appearing in court to defend the accused involved in the murder of wrestler Sanjay Patil who was shot dead in a market at Karad by two assailants on January 15, 2009.