The Bar Council of India has written a letter to the Supreme Court (SC) seeking its intervention to resolve the grievances of agitating lawyers in Cuttack.
Bar Council of India Chairman Manan Mishra has urged the Chief Justice and other judges of the SC to direct the Odisha Government to take immediate steps for redressal of the lawyers’ grievances. Mishra alleged that the State Government and the judiciary have turned a deaf ear to the genuine demands of the lawyers.“The strike is going on for the last one month. But no one sitting in the judiciary has taken any step for redressal of lawyers’ grievances. On the other hand, the Odisha Government is adamant not to take an action against the erring police officials,” the letter read.
The council also requested the SC to constitute a high-level committee headed by a sitting or former High Court Judge and having Chairman of the State Bar Council, Member-Representative of Bar Council of India from the State Bar Council of Odisha, President of High Court Bar Association, Cuttack, two Senior Advocates and the Home Secretary of the State as members to find out the truth and submit a report in three days. After submission of the report, action might be taken against erring police officials, the letter added.
Meanwhile, the lawyers staged a demonstration in front of the High Court wearing black badges demanding arrest of the accused policemen involved in the attack on a lawyer in Cuttack on August 28.