Bar Council Of Kerala Writes To CJ Intimating Of Lawyers' Abstention From Cooperating With Any 'Adalat' As Their Grievances Remain Unaddressed By The Bench [Read Letter]
Anxious by the "apathy" allegedly shown by the High Court towards the plight of the lawyers, the Bar Council of Kerala on Wednesday wrote a letter to the Chief Justice, intimating him of their decision to abstain from participating or cooperating with any Adalat, including E-Adalats, in the State of Kerala till all the issues affecting the Advocates' profession in the state...
Anxious by the "apathy" allegedly shown by the High Court towards the plight of the lawyers, the Bar Council of Kerala on Wednesday wrote a letter to the Chief Justice, intimating him of their decision to abstain from participating or cooperating with any Adalat, including E-Adalats, in the State of Kerala till all the issues affecting the Advocates' profession in the state are settled.
The decision was taken in conjunction with the Advocates community of Kerala and all Bar Associations.
The lawyers' community has highlighted several difficulties being faced by them and it aggrieved that other than giving oral assurances to ameliorate the same, the High Court did not take any steps in furtherance.
The Council wrote:
"The Chief Justice and the Judges of the Administrative Committee have orally assured the delegation of the Bar Council of Kerala that it would be called to discuss the many grievances pointed out by the Council.
… so far, no action is taken. Moreover, the Bar Council has not been called for even a single meeting as assured. On the contrary, even the oral requests from the side of the Bar Council for a meeting with the Chief Justice to address the immediate and urgent issues affecting the Advocates' community in Kerala have been repeatedly turned down, which is an embarrassment to the Advocates' community."
One of the major issues highlighted by the Bar Council in its letter is the arbitrary functioning of the Kerala State Legal Services Authority (KELSA).
It is alleged that KELSA takes unilateral decisions, "prejudicially affecting" the whole Advocates' community in the State.
"Presently, it is a matter of grave concern that the E-Lok Adalat and the Standard Operating Protocol (SOP) of the E-Lok Adalat, which have major consequences for the whole Advocates' community in Kerala, have been arbitrarily introduced by KELSA," they pointed out.
Other issues highlighted in the letter include:
- Countless difficulties and hardships faced by lawyers in respect of professional fees for litigations in the Motor Accidents Claims Tribunals (MACT), which was seriously affecting the livelihood of the lawyer community in general and certain lawyers in particular. This has happened due to changes made in the rules by the High Court without consultation, the Council said.
- Misbehaving conduct or errant behavior of certain Judicial Officers (a minuscule minority among Judicial Officers) demeaning and degrading lawyers including Senior and reputed lawyers at various Court Centres in Kerala.
- Representatives of the Bar are ignored or sidelined in all major developments including e-filing and Court e-systems on the Judicial and Professional side, by the highest Judiciary of the State as if the Bar is an inconsequential partner in administration of Justice and judicial process.
Read Letter