On Tuesday, the Supreme Court has issued Notice in a plea seeking issuance of directions to the Bar Council of India to allow use of advertisements for Advocates till March 2021, allow public listings so that other para-legal work can be taken up by them to earn living in light of the ongoing pandemic situation and allow alternative means of sustenance.
The BCI has been asked to respond within a period of two weeks.
A bench of Chief Justice SA Bobde, N. Subhash Reddy & AS Bopanna took up today, a PIL filed by a practicing Lawyer and Senior Standing Counsel to the income Tax Department, Charanjeet Chanderpal, in his capacity as Secretary General of a Non Governmental Organisation by the name of Nitya Law Society.
He in the plea filed has averrted that existing rules need to be altered in order to accommodate Advocates who are from middle and lower middle class and are unable to sustain themselves due to crisis that the pertaining pandemic has created.
The plea added that in such situations, for persons other than Advocates, if one option to earn to sustain is affected, they can look for alternatives and endeavour that would come in their way but if an Advocate works outside his profession , the regulations that govern the conduct of Advocates will consider it as 'professional misconduct.'
In backdrop of the above, the plea highlighted the financial loss that Advocates have faced during the pandemic and subsequent lockdown as a result of which there have been reports of suicides, depression and inability to subsist.
Thus, it has been pleaded that changes can be brought forth in the Bar Council of India Rules by issuance of a circular or modification or issuing a corrigendum or suspension of current rules as well as initiate modifications under Section 49 of the Advocates Act, 1961.
The plea read:
"There are reports of suicides as a result of no work, medical depression, Advocates's family members expiring due to no money to pay medical fees, reports of there being domestic violence in the houses of advocates. This is widely known as the internet is full of this information. This is happening all over India and times has come that the Bar Council of India must allow relaxations within the Rules. The same is applicable to the whole of India and time has come that the Bar Council of India must allow relaxations within the rules".
The petitioner has asked for a long term solution as he deem it to be a must in these unprecedented crisis instead of 'providing Rs. 5000 or 3000 per lawyer'.
He stressed on the increasing suicide cases by illustrating suicide by a 35 year old Lawyer and stated that many of his acquaintances are going through a financial crunch and that even Senior Advocates with selective practice are going through a financial crunch due to closure of courts.
"A number of cases of advocates getting suicidal thoughts, suffering from depressing, suffering from no income, suffering from starvation and no income- all as a result of closure of courts..... Our NGO to propose the contents of this submission ... This is necessary for the survival of the advocates belonging to the middle and lower middle class. The representation there represents lakhs of advocates across our country who have stood affected."
Read other assertion in PIL, Here
