Chaos in courtrooms across Uttar Pradesh due to widespread lawyer strikes has pushed the Allahabad High Court to take decisive action. The court recently ordered the Bar Council of India (BCI), the Bar Council of Uttar Pradesh, the Allahabad High Court Bar Association, and other relevant bar associations to outline their plans for enforcing the Supreme Court’s ban on lawyer strikes.
A contempt plea filed against the ongoing strikes by advocates in Uttar Pradesh brought this issue to the forefront. The District Bar Association, Prayagraj acknowledged the Supreme Court’s prohibition on strikes but stressed the need for a collaborative approach with the Bar Council to devise an effective strategy.
Both the BCI and the State Bar Council requested additional time to gather comprehensive instructions. Consequently, a bench comprising Justices Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Dr. Gautam Chowdhary issued a directive:
“The Bar Council of India as well as the State Bar Council and the respective Bar Associations of the High Court Allahabad and the District Bar Association Prayagraj will file their respective affidavits clearly disclosing the manner in which they propose to ensure compliance with the directions issued by the Hon’ble Supreme Court prohibiting holding of strikes by the lawyers in respective Courts.”
During the hearing, the court was informed by a report from the Registrar General that the work in nearly all districts of Uttar Pradesh had been severely disrupted by the strikes. This report will be shared with both the BCI and the State Bar Council.
The court scheduled the next hearing for July 16.
Advocate RK Ojha represented the District Bar Association, Prayagraj, while Advocate Sai Girdhar appeared for the BCI and Advocate Ashok Kumar Tiwari for the State Bar Council.
In response to the ongoing strike, the BCI has planned a joint virtual meeting for Sunday, July 14. Meanwhile, the Allahabad High Court Bar Association continued its strike on July 11, protesting the High Court administration’s failure to address several issues, particularly the conduct of certain judges towards the Bar.
A letter from the Bar Association on July 10 highlighted concerns over the deteriorating relationship between judges and lawyers, affecting the administration of justice. The letter specifically mentioned:
- The conduct of Justice Rohit Ranjan Agarwal;
- The behavior of some other judges towards the lawyers;
- Judges not adhering to the tradition of revising the list of fresh cases/unlisted cases.
The situation remains tense as all eyes are on the upcoming court proceedings and the BCI’s efforts to resolve the ongoing strike issue.
