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Tuesday, Feb 24, 2009
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Chief Justice briefed on court incidents

J. Venkatesan

Plea for judicial probe to be heard on February 25
Hearing of plea to declare lawyers’ stir illegal advanced

New Delhi: The Supreme Court will hear on February 25 a plea for ordering a judicial enquiry by a panel of sitting High Court Judges into the incidents involving lawyers and police on the Madras High Court premises on February 19. This was conveyed to a delegation of women lawyers, led by R. Vaigai, when they met Chief Justice of India K.G. Balakrishnan and apprised him of the police attack on lawyers, judges, court staff, litigants and the general public within the court precincts on February 19. It presented a memorandum to him.

Justice P. Sathasivam, who visited the High Court on Sunday and held discussions with judges and Bar representatives, was present at the meeting.

A Bench of Chief Justice of India and Justice Sathasivam advanced the hearing of another petition, seeking to declare lawyers’ strike as illegal, to February 25 from February 27.

Later talking to the media, Ms. Vaigai said, “We had given a memorandum to the CJI and apprised him of the incidents. We requested the CJI to order a judicial enquiry. The CJI said it would be treated as regular petition and taken up for hearing on February 25. We have also given him a compact disc on the incidents.”

She said a wrong impression had been created in the media as if the lawyers were the culprits. Till February 18, lawyers were on strike and they resumed work on February 19 and there was no problem till 3.30 pm on that day, when about 400 policemen entered and started attacking the lawyers and others.”

Explaining the sequence of events, the memorandum said that around 3.30 pm, most of the gates on the High Court premises were closed by the police, thus trapping judges, advocates and the litigant public. Stones were pelted from all directions and according to reports, police started throwing stones first and lathicharge of advocates by armed riot police started. Justice Arumugaperumal Adityan was injured in the incident.

The police entered court halls, advocates’ chambers, administrative offices and lathicharged advocates and staff and did not spare even judges and caused extensive damage to the vehicles parked on the campus. “While this is the state of affairs, attempts are being made to project the violence of the police as a clash between them and the advocates.” Describing the incidents as an assault on the independence of the judiciary, the memorandum requested the CJI to order a judicial probe and said the courts could not function unless extensive repairs were effected.

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