Allahabad HC Bars Ten Advocates' Entry To Court Premises For Allegedly Thrashing Litigants, Issues Criminal Contempt Notice

Taking a stern stance, the Allahabad High Court has issued criminal contempt notices to ten advocates accused of assaulting litigants at the Prayagraj District Court premises. The Court also restrained them from entering the premises of the District Judgeship at Prayagraj."The incident in this case has to be viewed with utmost seriousness. This Court cannot allow the Court proceedings to be obstructed in a manner that litigants are brutally thrashed in the court room and the Presiding Officer has to flee to her chambers for her safety. This type of aggressive and violent conduct in the court will cause a virtual collapse of the system. This Court cannot be a silent spectator to events of this kind. A clear and unequivocal message must go to unscrupulous persons that incident of this kind would not be tolerated and shall be dealt with sternly," a bench of Justice Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Justice Mohd. Azhar Husain Idrisi observed.The Court also called upon the Commissioner of Police, Prayagraj, to ensure that adequate police force is made available on the direction of District Judge, Prayagraj, to allow smooth functioning of the Court. The Commissioner of Police, Prayagraj, has also been directed to authorize a responsible officer, not below the rank of Assistant Commissioner of Police, Prayagraj, to specify the criminal history of all the persons against whom notices are issued in the present contempt matter. The status of the investigation or the action taken in that regard shall also be specifically disclosed, the Court said in its order passed on Monday.The division bench passed this order while acting on a reference sent by the Prayagraj district judge. In the same matter, on April 30, the HC restrained two lawyers from entering the Prayagraj District Court and practising before any court in the State for their alleged act of assault on a litigant.On Monday, the names of an additional 10 advocates involved in the alleged incident came to the Court's notice in a report of the District Judge, Prayagraj, submitted to the HC pursuant to the Division bench's April 30th Order.The background of the case Per the reference sent by the Prayagraj district judge, some advocates entered the senior division court premises and started pressuring the Presiding Officer to take up a particular suit.Allegedly, the litigants of the aforesaid matter were physically assaulted inside the Court, and the Presiding Officer was also ill-treated.In her order, the Presiding Officer mentioned that the President of the Bar tried to resolve the issue but alleged the two named advocates did not even listen to the President. The President of the Bar Association thereafter left the Court to save himself.Thereafter, the crowd, which had come in support of unscrupulous lawyers, came on the dias and physically assaulted two litigants. When they both, tried to enter the chamber to save themselves, the crowd supporting the two advocates entered the chamber of the Presiding Officer and physically assaulted the litigants.The Presiding Officer had to rush to the chamber of the Chief Judicial Magistrate to save herself. It was much later that the police personnel arrived, and the Presiding Officer could enter her chamber.Taking note of the entire incident, the High Court observed in its order that such instances pose a serious challenge to the very functioning of the judicial system.

Allahabad HC Bars Ten Advocates' Entry To Court Premises For Allegedly Thrashing Litigants, Issues Criminal Contempt Notice

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