Legal Cases Disrupted by Lawyer Strikes” – Supreme Court Sends Notice to Rajasthan High Court Jaipur Bar Association(pdf Attach)

A panel of Judges consisting of Justices Abhay S Oka and Pankaj Mithal presided over a special leave petition case, which challenged a Rajasthan High Court, Jaipur Bench’s unfavorable ruling. The ruling had been prompted by the absence of lawyers due to a strike. Earlier, on September 27, the Court had criticized the behavior of the Association, including the Rajasthan Bar Association, Jaipur Bench, and the Bar Council of India.

The Court expressed disappointment that the High Court Bar Association in Rajasthan had decided to abstain from court proceedings, which left the Court without the necessary legal support. However, on this occasion, the Association did not appear in court because they had not been served with notice. Consequently, the Court issued a notice to the Bar Association, directing it to be served through the High Court registrar.

During the proceedings, the Counsel representing the Bar Council informed the Bench that a similar case was pending before another coordinating Bench. The Counsel also mentioned that they had drafted rules regarding strikes, which were currently under consideration by the coordinating Bench.

In a previous incident in 2021, the Rajasthan High Court Bar Association in Jaipur had issued an ‘unconditional and unqualified apology’ to the Supreme Court regarding contempt proceedings initiated against them for boycotting a High Court bench as part of a strike. The Association had also committed not to engage in court boycotts in the future.