Court proceedings hit as lawyers protest

Courts across Karnataka wore a deserted look as lawyers boycotted proceedings to participate in a protest called by the Bar Council of India (BCI) to press for their demands on Tuesday.

The protests were held after a resolution was passed by the Karnataka State Bar Council and the Advocates Association of Bangalore (AAB) in support of the demands raised by the BCI.

In the city, hundreds of advocates joined a peaceful procession that began in the city civil court and went up to Raj Bhavan, where the advocates submitted a memorandum to Governor Vajubhai Vala.

The demands include allocation of Rs 5,000 crore in the Union budget for the welfare of the lawyers and the litigants, a stipend of Rs 10,000 per month for young lawyers during first five years of their practice, adequate facilities for the members of the bar, insurance cover up to Rs 20 lakh for lawyers and their dependents and enactment of Advocates Protection Act among others.

The advocates have also submitted a memorandum to Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara. They also expressed disappointment over the non-allocation of funds for the legal fraternity in this year’s state budget.

The procession also witnessed strong police presence and elaborate security arrangements along the route.

“Over 3,000 advocates joined the protest which turned out to be successful. We express complete solidarity with the demands raised by the BCI. We are also not happy with the dismal (funds) allocation for the legal fraternity in this year’s budget,” said A P Ranganatha, president of AAB, who led the procession.

“The protest was held in a peaceful manner and did not result in any traffic jams causing inconvenience to the public,” Ranganath added.