Allahabad HCBA To Abstain From Judicial Work Today In Protest Against Non-Appointment Of HC Judges, Proposed Amendments To Advocates Act

As per the association's press release, the meeting discussed that despite the sanctioned strength of 160 judges, the High Court is working with less than half of the sanctioned strength, as only 55 judges are working at the HC in Allahabad and 23 judges are working at its Lucknow bench (a total of 79 judges).

The meeting also discussed that the strength of HC judges was raised to 160 in 2007; however, the full strength of judges has never been achieved at the HC, especially at the Prayagraj/Allahabad bench. It may be noted that the maximum strength with which the HC worked was close to 105, and that was many years ago.

The executive committee has also suggested that a revised standard for the number of judges be established and that appropriate measures are taken to fill up the vacancies.

“Based on the number of pending cases in Allahabad, a revised standard for the number of judges should be set, and the vacant positions should be filled with judges. If this is not done, the Bar Association will not be able to provide its support in judicial proceedings. If this is not done, it will have a negative impact on the "Independence of the Judiciary" and will also adversely affect the "Public faith in the Judicial Process,” the association's press release states.

Furthermore, it was stated in the meeting that due to the low number of judges, new cases are constantly pending, and their hearings are delayed for several months, resulting in a diminished impact of the court on the public, which is directly affecting the "Independence of the Judiciary."

“Under these circumstances, we unanimously pass the proposal that the vacant positions in the Hon'ble High Court be filled immediately, and the number of positions be increased, so that the court can once again deliver swift justice with its full strength,” the resolution of the Association states.

In this regard, the HCBA decided to raise this matter before the Chief Justice. In protest against the decreasing number of judges and the Advocates' Amendment Bill, the association called upon the High Court advocates to abstain from judicial work on 21.02.2025 (Friday).

Earlier this month, the Supreme Court expressed its concerns over the pendency of cases at the Allahabad High Court as it stressed the need to fill vacancies.

The Supreme Court acknowledged that the High Court has been struggling to cope with the pending matters and the only way out is to take necessary steps at the earliest to fill up the vacancies by recommending suitable persons on the basis of pure merit and ability.

Thus, a bench of Justices J.B. Pardiwala and R. Mahadevan sent a representation addressed to the Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court regarding matters pending for many decades in the High Court urging to pass an appropriate order on its administrative side.

Read more about the Supreme Court's order here: 'Each Judge Has 15K-20K Matters' : Supreme Court Expresses Concern At Allahabad HC Case Pendency; Stresses On Need To Fill Vacancies

Regarding proposed amendments to the Advocates Act, the legal fraternity has raised its voice against the draft bill, the proposed amendments to the Advocates Act, 1961.

The BCI has already expressed "profound concerns" regarding the Bill and identified several provisions that, if enacted, would have "serious implications for the legal profession and [would] undermine the autonomy and integrity of BCI." Read more about BCI's key objections here.

However, in a letter dated February 20, the BCI has further urged the lawyers to withdraw their ongoing protests as it stated that it held a comprehensive discussion with the Union Law Ministry, where the Government assured that all contentious issues would be examined and suitably addressed before the enactment of the bill.