Cuttack, April 21: Lawyers of Orissa High Court and all subordinate courts across the state today boycotted work and burnt copies of the Law Commission of India's report responding to a call given by the Odisha State Bar Council (OSBC).
On March 31, the lawyers had ceased work in response to a call given by the Bar Council of India to observe the day as a protest day against the law commission's report on the Advocates Amendment Bill 2017.
On April 3, the lawyers had stayed away from courts when the OSBC gave a state-wide call to observe the day as a protest day. The OSBC intensified its agitation by giving a call to the lawyers in the state to abstain from court work again today and burn copies of the report that gives clients the right to seek compensation if they are not satisfied with a lawyer's service. OSBC chairman Manas Ranjan Mohapatra claimed: "Around 48,000 lawyers of 160 bar associations across the state observed the day as protest day by abstaining from court work and burning copies of the Law Commission of India's report."
"We oppose the recommendations of the law commission and demand its rejection by the central government as it is draconian in nature," Mohapatra said. The lawyers today submitted memorandums through their respective district administrations. The lawyers are up in arms as the commission headed by former Supreme Court judge B.S. Chauhan has recommended major amendments to the Advocates Act regarding constitution and functions of the various bar councils, providing for the registration and regulation of law firms and foreign lawyers, defining the term "misconduct" and providing clear penalties for professional misconduct, and increasing accountability by setting up grievance redress system mechanisms for litigants to complain against advocates.
Orissa High Court Bar Association secretary Umesh Chandra Behura said: "We urge the central government to reject the proposal of the law commission as it is anti-lawyer."
The OSBC has called a convention of various bar councils and high court bar associations in Bhubaneswar tomorrow. "Representatives of various bar councils, high court bar associations and district bar associations of the state will take part in the convention," Mohapatra said.