Orissa HC adjourns contempt hearing over lawyers' strikes to Nov 4

The Orissa High Court on Monday adjourned to November 4 hearing of a contempt petition it had initiated last week over frequent strikes by lawyers in the state.

All 68 bar associations, which were issued notices in connection with the case, appeared before the full bench of the court and unanimously sought at least four weeks time to file their replies.

The bench, led by Chief Justice K S Jhaveri, however, granted only two weeks time and fixed November 4 for the next hearing.

Concerned over the frequent strikes by the lawyers in Odisha, the court had instituted the contempt petition on the basis of a report by its own registry.

Apart from arraigning the erring bar associations as respondents, the bench had also issued notices to the Odisha government, the Bar Council of India and the Odisha State Bar Council.

The bar associations represented by their respective counsels decided to face the contempt proceedings together and urged the court to supply them with copies of its registry's report so that they could respond accordingly.

Soon after the adjournment, the High Court Bar Association's general body met and resolved to continue its ongoing stir for filling up of vacant positions of judges in the Orissa High Court.

It also decided to request all other bar associations to follow suit.

"Our ongoing agitation to press for immediate filling up of the vacant positions of the judges in the high court will continue," said association president Gopal Krushna Mohanty.