Judges, Lawyers, Ministers demand Better Deal for Lawyers

Union Minister C P Joshi Urges Bar Council to Suggest Alternate Models

Bar Council of India celebrates Golden Jubilee with Fanfare

Adopts Resolution Opposing Govt Move on Waqf Boards

New Delhi, Feb 18: Judges, lawyers, Union and State Ministers joined hands to demand more welfare measures for the lawyers including stipends for young advocates at the valedictory function of the Golden Jubilee celebrations of the Bar Council of India (BCI) here last evening.

“Young lawyers should join the Bar and get the support of the Government also for their livelihood including stipend”, Mr. Justice M. Y. Eqbal, Judge, Supreme Court of India, said addressing the Valedictory Function.

He said it was the duty of the Central and state Governments as also the Bar Councils to ensure that the young lawyers were taken care of in the initial years of their professional career.

Asserting that there was no dispute or differences between the Bar and the Bench and they were two sides of the coin and the judges too were lawyers at one point of time or the other and the Bench and Bar were incomplete without the other, he said, “we (judges) should also think about the welfare of the lawyers”.

In his address, Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways, Dr. C. P. Joshi, assured the lawyers gathered on the occasion that he too would strongly advocate the welfare of the advocates before the Government.

Asking why there was lack of faith in judiciary, Dr. Joshi said the judicial system need to be reformed and the Bar Council should suggest alternate models of governance and judiciary. He urged the BCI to “put the Government on the right track” by proposing an alternative blueprint or model of governance.

The traditional methods such as delivery of summons should keep pace with time and technology and suggested that the Supreme Court verdicts over the last several decades be classified and codified to provide maximum benefits to the common man.

The Minister also suggested that the lawyers can also play a vital role in providing grass root level support to over two lakh Panchayats in the country.

In his address, Delhi Law and Justice Minister Mr. R. K. Goswami while calling for strengthening further the welfare measures for the legal fraternity urged them to provide free legal support to women and children and to safeguard the rights of the poor.

“Society can live without a legislature but not a judicial system” he said emphasizing on the need to strengthen the credibility of the judicial system.

In his Presidential address, BCI Chairman Mr. Manan Kumar Mishra called upon the lawyers to unite and display their strength. The Bench and the bar were two wheels of the same vehicle, he maintained while listing the efforts and achievements of the Council in providing relief to the lawyers.

Mr. Mishra informed that the meeting also adopted a resolution opposing the Government’s move to replace the provision of having one member in the Waqf Board.

Chairman of the Bar Council of Delhi Mr. R. S. Goswami and other lawyers also demanded social security measures for the lawyers such as insurance of Rs 25 lakhs and mandatory clearance of lawyers in property deals.

Later, Dr. Mishra and other office bearers of the BCI presented mementos to the dignitaries on the dais.

In his inaugural address on Saturday, Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh had said he was fully aware of the responsibilities of the Government in working with the Judiciary and other stake holders to build a strong and effective justice delivery system. “I reaffirm our Government's commitment to take all necessary action in this direction, and also to work for the welfare of the legal fraternity.”

The two day conference, attended by Supreme Court and High Court judges, law officers of the Central and State Governments, lawyers, academics and students, deliberated on various issues confronting the judiciary, the legal fraternity and the society at large.

Union Law and Justice Minister Dr. Ashwani Kumar had also unveiled a Golden Jubilee Plaque at the BCI headquarters on Friday as part of the celebrations.

S Prabhakaran                                                         Devdutt Chakravarty

Spokesperson                                                             Media Coordinator

Bar Council of India                                                Mob.: 09015959739