The Supreme Court has castigated members of the Barabanki District Bar Association in Uttar Pradesh for resorting to “hooliganism” after they vandalised the office of a fellow lawyer who had represented some toll plaza workers involved in a spat with a local advocate over the payment of toll.
A bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta, while granting bail to the accused, transferred the trial from Barabanki to Delhi’s Tis Hazari Courts as the petitioners said they could not expect a fair trial in view of the hostile situation and refusal of any advocate to represent them.
“The facts noted hereinabove reveal a very sorry state of affairs. The legal profession, which was once regarded as a noble profession, has clearly been tainted and tarnished by the acts of hooliganism perpetrated pursuant to the fracas which took place at the toll plaza on January 14, 2026.
“We can understand the sentiment of fraternity amongst the lawyers, but that, by no means, can justify the acts of violence and lawlessness which ensued when a brave lawyer came forward to defend the accused. These deplorable acts of hooliganism deserve to be deprecated. The disciplinary body, i.e., the Bar Council of India, is expected to take appropriate steps in this regard,” the apex court said.
The bench observed that a perusal of the FIR made it clear that there was nothing in the case to deny bail to the accused. Further, there is no dispute that the petitioners were performing their duties at the toll plaza where the incident happened.
“Possibility cannot be ruled out that the complainant may have resisted the attempt of the petitioners in demanding toll (rightly so), resulting in a spat between the complainant and the employees of the toll plaza i.e, the petitioners herein.
“In these circumstances, denial of bail to the petitioners and the curtailment of their liberty for a period exceeding two months is absolutely unjustified and violative of the Fundamental Right of Liberty guaranteed under Article 21 of the Constitution warranting exercise of the extraordinary writ jurisdiction conferred upon this court by Article 32 of the Constitution,” the bench said.
The court directed the immediate release of the petitioners on bail upon furnishing of personal bonds to the satisfaction of the magistrate concerned. To ensure proper legal representation and a fair trial for the accused, the court also directed the case to be transferred to the Tis Hazari Courts in Delhi.