"Shocking Misconduct": Bombay High Court Directs Bar Council To Act Against Advocate For Misleading Court & Party

The Bombay High Court recently asked the Bar Council of Maharashtra & Goa (BCMG) to initiate appropriate proceedings against advocate Santosh Damodar Chande for putting in appearance for private persons without any authority and also for misleading the court. A division bench of Justice Anil Kilor and Justice Nivedita Mehta ordered the BCM to take action against Chande for, what it termed, his 'misconduct' before the court. Notably, the bench was hearing a plea by one Pushpa Gupta, who sought removal of encroachments on government land by some private persons (Respondent number 5 to 11), who were respondents to the petition. In a previous hearing held on March 30, 2026, Chande told the judges that he represented all the 7 private persons, and relied on some 'forged' document to claim possession of the land in question since more than 40 years. Since the bench noted that the private persons tried to mislead the court, it had then issued contempt of court notices against them. On a recent hearing held on April 9, Chande informed the bench that he has filed Vakalatnama only on behalf of Respondent number 7 in the petition and not for all the other private respondents ((Respondent number 5 to 11).The judges termed this 'revelation' to be 'shocking' as they had passed orders in the case twice, under the impression that he represented all the seven private respondents, particularly the one issuing contempt notices against them. "Thus, it appears that Chande has misled the Court and the parties. The mischief played by him amounts to misconduct. We accordingly refer the matter to the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa for taking suitable action against him," the judges ordered. In its order, the bench noted that Chande tried to further mislead the court by arguing that a civil court, in the instant case, had delivered judgments in two civil suits. However, the records, sifted by the judges, indicated otherwise. "The misconduct is, therefore, writ large," the judges remarked, adding, "This is not the first instance in which the conduct of Chande has been found objectionable. On multiple prior occasions, similar incidents have been overlooked by the Court. The Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa shall take note of this development as well and take appropriate decision." The decision shall be taken as expeditiously as possible and preferably within four months, the bench ordered. As regards the merits of the matter, the bench was informed by the Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT) that the encroachments would be removed within a period of six weeks. Appearance:Senior Advocate Anil Mardikar along with Advocate Prasad Gupta appeared for the Petitioner.Assistant Government Pleader AB Badar represented the State.Advocate Sudhir Puranik represented the Nagpur Improvement Trust. Advocates Kiran Israni and Rohan Chhabra represented the Nagpur Municipal Corporation. Advocate Santosh Chande represented R-7Case Title: Pushpa Sanjay Gupta vs State of Maharashtra (Writ Petition 7236 of 2024)Click Here To Read/Download Order

"Shocking Misconduct": Bombay High Court Directs Bar Council To Act Against Advocate For Misleading Court & Party

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"Shocking Misconduct": Bombay High Court Directs Bar Council To Act Against Advocate For Misleading Court & Party

Narsi Benwal

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