The Supreme Court on Thursday (September 03) declined to entertain a plea seeking a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the alleged assault of lawyers who were protesting at the Bar Council of India (BCI) premises on August 21. The Bench allowed the petitioners to withdraw the matter and approach the jurisdictional High Court.
The matter was orally mentioned before a Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V. Mohan.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan submitted that around 20–25 lawyers had gathered at the BCI premises while raising grievances concerning the functioning of the Bar Council and seeking the resignation of BCI Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra.
According to the petitioners, some persons claiming to be lawyers allegedly assaulted the protesters. Bhushan told the Court that the incident had been captured by CCTV cameras installed at the BCI premises.
He also referred to an alleged statement by the BCI Chairman describing the protesting lawyers as “legal cockroaches” and argued that the circumstances required an independent investigation. The petitioners also sought preservation of the CCTV footage.
Justice Joymalya Bagchi questioned the decision of lawyers to resort to protest, observing that advocates form a disciplined community and have institutional mechanisms available for raising grievances.
The Court noted that lawyers, as officers of the Court, are expected to follow the standards laid down for their conduct, particularly when grievances concern the administration of justice.
At the same time, when Bhushan submitted that protesters could not be assaulted merely because they were protesting, the Chief Justice agreed.
“If some lawyers are protesting, they can't be beaten up.”
Justice Bagchi also indicated that the appropriate legal forum should be approached rather than seeking direct intervention from the Supreme Court.
The Bench ultimately declined to entertain the plea at this stage and granted the petitioners liberty to pursue appropriate proceedings before the High Court.
The Chief Justice said:
“Let them go to HC. Otherwise, sometimes people feel we are having institutional bias.”
The Supreme Court permitted withdrawal of the petition and directed the Registry to return the original paper book so that the petitioners could approach the jurisdictional High Court.
