HC orders FIR against 'imposter lawyer'

The Allahabad High Court has ordered registration of an FIR against a man who allegedly passed himself off as an advocate with the same name.

Jitendra Kumar Singh appeared before the court several times, posing as another Jitendra Singh - the one who is actually registered with the court.

The alleged imposter too had applied for a roll number - without which no lawyer can practise in the Allahabad High Court - but his application had been turned down.

He then began misusing the roll number of the advocate with the same name.

The bench comprising justices Vipin Sinha and I A Khan directed the court's Registrar General on Monday to lodge an FIR against the alleged imposter.

But at the same time, the judges said their order will be kept in abeyance for two months to enable him to seek any legal remedy.

The deception surfaced on August 29 when an appeal filed by Ram Gopal was called for hearing.

As Jitendra Kumar Singh stood up to argue for his client, the registered lawyer challenged him, telling the court that his roll number was being wrongly used.

The alleged imposter had also given out the registered lawyer's address and his bar council enrolment number, the court was told.

Initially, the imposter said he might have mentioned the lawyer's roll number by mistake. But then accepted that his application to be on the advocates' roll had been rejected.

He was briefly taken into custody and a preliminary inquiry was conducted by the Registrar General.

The judges studied the inquiry report before ordering the FIR.