Striking lawyers of the Odisha High Court on Tuesday met Chief Justice AK Goel and apprised him about their stand on the contentious issue of setting up of permanent Benches of the High Court.
A 30-member delegation of HC lawyers led by senior advocate Gangadhar Tripathy met the Chief Justice and apprised him about their grievances in connection with the State Government’s attempt to set up HC Benches flouting the Constitutional provisions guiding the procedure.
“We apprised the Honourable Chief Justice about our stand on the issue and requested him to ensure that any decision taken on the contentious issue is made as per law governing it,” said Tripathy. He said the Chief Justice is likely to take a decision on the issue within two to three days. Basing on the discussion with the Chief Justice, the High Court Bar Association would take a decision on its members’ ongoing strike at its general body meeting on Wednesday, Tripathy said.
The HC lawyers have been boycotting courts for over a month protesting against what they call the “prevaricated statement of Government functionaries over the issue” initially and later after the Chief Minister wrote a letter to the Union law Minister recommending setting up permanent HC Benches in south and west Odisha.