Karnataka High Court initiates contempt proceedings over ruckus created by lawyers’ group inside Chief Justice’s court hall

The High Court of Karnataka on Tuesday began suo motu contempt proceedings against unidentified individuals amongst a group of advocates, who barged into the Chief Justice’s court hall and disrupted proceedings by creating ruckus.

The group compelled lawyers present in the court hall to leave, objecting to their participation in the court proceedings despite a call to boycott court proceedings across the State given by bar associations, including Advocates’ Association, Bengaluru (AAB) to protest against the recent incidents of murders, attempt to murder of advocates in various parts of the State.

A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice K.S. Hemalekha, which was conducting proceedings in the court hall, took serious exception to the conduct of the group of advocates and ordered registration of a contempt of court proceedings in this regard. The Bench also ordered issue of notice to the AAB.

“Prima facie, we are of the view that this conduct amounts to contemptuous behaviour,” the Bench observed in its order.

The Bench expressed displeasure over the incident, particularly since it had earlier promised the association that no adverse orders would be passed against advocates, who abstained from court proceedings on account of the boycott call.

After initiation of contempt of court proceedings, a group of advocates led by AAB Treasurer Shwetha Ravishankar appeared before the Bench and tried to explain the situation and offered apology for the incident.

However, the Bench told her, “This is the High Court of the State, and if you think that anyone can barge in and start creating a ruckus, then the consequences must follow.”

The Bench told her that response of the association would be heard when the contempt petition would be taken up for hearing on November 19.

Earlier, a group of advocates led by AAB president Vivek Subba Reddy entered the court hall-2 and asked the advocates, including a senior advocate attending the court proceedings, to go out of the court hall.

However, a Division Bench comprising Justice Anu Sivaraman and Justice K.S. Bharath Kumar, which was conducting proceedings, took serious exception to the conduct of the office-bearers of the association.

Meanwhile, advocates attending the proceedings vacated the court hall-2 avoiding any confrontation.

Similarly, various groups entered various other court halls and compelled the advocates, who were attending court proceedings, to leave the court halls.

These incident resulted in abrupt ending of court proceedings in a majority of the court halls. However, in some court halls, advocates appeared through video conference facility and argued the cases.

Many litigants and senior advocates expressed their displeasure over the act of compelling the advocates to leave the court halls.

Meanwhile, a delegation led by Mr. Reddy met Home Minister Priyank Kharge seeking adequate security to advocates by amending the provisions of the Advocates Protection Act making offence against advocates non-bailable one and to enforce standard operating procedure for the police on how to treat the advocates when they visit the police station to represent their litigant-clients.