HC restrains advocates associations

The Madras High Court today restrained various advocates associations attached to it from holding their elections until their byelaws were amended enabling "One-Bar-One-Vote-Rule".
Passing the order on a petition by several advocates, a bench, comprising Justice V.Ramasubramanian and Justice K Ravichandra Baabu, granted interim injunction restraining associations such as the Madras High Court Advocate Association, The Law Association, The Women Lawyers Association, The Madras Bar Association from holding elections either until further orders or until their bye-laws were amended.
The bench noted that already the high courts of Rajasthan, Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra etc., had implemented one-bar- one-vote-rule.
Most of the problems this court had encountered in the recent past was attributed primarily to the multiple voting rights that one member of a bar has in many associations, the Judges said.

The bench also allowed the present office bearers to continue till then.
Referring to a December, 2013 resolution of Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry which stated that the respective bars shall ensure the concerned advocate shall have voting right in only one association, the court said none of the associations had taken steps in the past two years to implement the resolution.
Besides, the bench also quoted a Supreme Court order in this regard and said allowing elections as per existing bye-laws would amount to violating the apex court judgement.