Tag: lawyers

  • Lawyers boycott Ankita murder accused; Protesters demand CBI probe

    By PTI

    KOTDWAR: The main accused in Ankita Bhandari case on Wednesday could not file their bail application in a court here after a local body of lawyers decided to boycott them, even as protests were held demanding a CBI probe into her murder.

    The matter was to be heard virtually in the civil court here but lawyers refused en masse to move the bail applications on behalf of the “perpetrators of such a heinous crime”.

    The Bar Association of Kotdwar passed a resolution not to represent the accused, a lawyer said.

    Earlier, Anganvadi workers, with sickles in their hands, and women associated with different organisations held a protest here demanding a CBI probe in the case.

    The protesters from Rikhnikhal, Ekeshwar, Dwarikhal and Dugadda in the district took out a rally from Jhanda Chawk to the tehsil briefly, blocking NH 534 on the way, and handed over a memorandum addressed to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami to local authorities.

    Ward councillor Saurav Naudiyal said he had submitted a memorandum demanding a CBI probe into the case. The protesters also demonstrated outside the court demanding the hanging of Ankita’s killers.

    In Dehradun, the Congress held a dharna at Gandhi Park for a CBI probe into the Ankita Bhandari murder case, saying it has no confidence in the ongoing investigation by the SIT.

    Senior Congress leader Harish Rawat, Leader of Opposition in Uttarakhand Assembly Yashpal Arya, state unit president Karan Mahra, his predecessor Ganesh Godiyal and other party leaders participated in the protest.

    “The chief minister hurriedly ordered the demolition of the resort to destroy evidence. The DGP’s telephonic conversation with the slain girl’s father was recorded and put in the public domain. It is a crime. How can we trust an SIT constituted by him? We demand a high court-monitored CBI probe into the case,” state Congress chief Mahra said.

    Chief Minister Dhami announced financial assistance of Rs 25 lakh to the family of Ankita Bhandari and assured her family that the case would be heard in a fast-track court.

    “The state government is with Ankita’s family. We will extend all help to them. The case is being probed by an SIT (Special Investigation Team). The investigation will be conducted impartially and completed as soon,” he said.

    Meanwhile, a senior police official said the case is being investigated from all angles with total promptness.

    Bhandari, a 19-year-old receptionist at a resort near Rishikesh in Uttarakhand, was allegedly killed by the resort owner and two of his accomplices.

    The official said the three accused, including resort owner Pulkit Arya, were arrested within 24 hours of the matter being handed over to the regular police force from revenue police on September 22.

    “A special investigation team (SIT) headed by a DIG-level officer is fast collecting the evidence based on which we can plead for the hanging of the accused in the court of law,” he said, requesting anonymity.

    Rubbishing allegations that the accused are being shielded by destroying evidence related to the case in the garb of demolishing parts of the resort, he said there has been no tampering with the evidence.

    Asked why the VIP guest, who finds a mention in Bhandari’s chat with her friend that has now gone viral and to whom she was asked to offer “extra service” for money at the resort, is yet to be brought under the ambit of the probe, the official emphatically said he will also be included.

    “It is, in fact, in our efforts to find out about him that we have summoned Ankita’s friend from Jammu. The investigation will be carried forward on the basis of his interrogation,” he said.

    The accused had said they had pushed Bhandari into the Chilla canal on September 18 and her body was found on September 24. He said that samples from her body parts have been sent for a forensic examination to rule out rape and the report is likely to be available soon.

    The probe is being conducted very fast and the truth will soon come out, he said. “People should keep patience. Ankita will get justice,” he asserted.

    The SIT probing the case on Tuesday seized a grey Activa and a black Pulsar motorcycle, which were suspected to be used in the crime.

    The SIT has also summoned a couple who had worked at the resort earlier and others for interrogation, it said. The SIT has found the list of guests staying at the resort on the day of the incident.

    It has also collected physical evidence and is examining electronic evidence such as CCTV footage and mobile call records.

    The main accused Pulkit Arya is the son of former Bharatiya Janata Party leader Vinod Arya, who was expelled by the party when Pulkit’s name cropped up in the case.

    Also on Wednesday, an RSS office bearer who had uploaded an objectionable post on social media against the kin of Bhandari after her murder was booked for sedition and spreading caste animosity.

    “A case has been registered against Vipin Karnwal, an RSS functionary, at the Raiwala police station under the IT act for sedition and spreading caste animosity,” Rishikesh SDM Dinesh Chandra Dhaundiyal said.

    Karnwal’s social media post had sparked tension in Raiwala and Rishikesh with protests at different places.

    The highway to Delhi was blocked by protesters on Wednesday too but they lifted the blockade after an assurance from the police that a case will be lodged against Karnwal.

    KOTDWAR: The main accused in Ankita Bhandari case on Wednesday could not file their bail application in a court here after a local body of lawyers decided to boycott them, even as protests were held demanding a CBI probe into her murder.

    The matter was to be heard virtually in the civil court here but lawyers refused en masse to move the bail applications on behalf of the “perpetrators of such a heinous crime”.

    The Bar Association of Kotdwar passed a resolution not to represent the accused, a lawyer said.

    Earlier, Anganvadi workers, with sickles in their hands, and women associated with different organisations held a protest here demanding a CBI probe in the case.

    The protesters from Rikhnikhal, Ekeshwar, Dwarikhal and Dugadda in the district took out a rally from Jhanda Chawk to the tehsil briefly, blocking NH 534 on the way, and handed over a memorandum addressed to Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami to local authorities.

    Ward councillor Saurav Naudiyal said he had submitted a memorandum demanding a CBI probe into the case. The protesters also demonstrated outside the court demanding the hanging of Ankita’s killers.

    In Dehradun, the Congress held a dharna at Gandhi Park for a CBI probe into the Ankita Bhandari murder case, saying it has no confidence in the ongoing investigation by the SIT.

    Senior Congress leader Harish Rawat, Leader of Opposition in Uttarakhand Assembly Yashpal Arya, state unit president Karan Mahra, his predecessor Ganesh Godiyal and other party leaders participated in the protest.

    “The chief minister hurriedly ordered the demolition of the resort to destroy evidence. The DGP’s telephonic conversation with the slain girl’s father was recorded and put in the public domain. It is a crime. How can we trust an SIT constituted by him? We demand a high court-monitored CBI probe into the case,” state Congress chief Mahra said.

    Chief Minister Dhami announced financial assistance of Rs 25 lakh to the family of Ankita Bhandari and assured her family that the case would be heard in a fast-track court.

    “The state government is with Ankita’s family. We will extend all help to them. The case is being probed by an SIT (Special Investigation Team). The investigation will be conducted impartially and completed as soon,” he said.

    Meanwhile, a senior police official said the case is being investigated from all angles with total promptness.

    Bhandari, a 19-year-old receptionist at a resort near Rishikesh in Uttarakhand, was allegedly killed by the resort owner and two of his accomplices.

    The official said the three accused, including resort owner Pulkit Arya, were arrested within 24 hours of the matter being handed over to the regular police force from revenue police on September 22.

    “A special investigation team (SIT) headed by a DIG-level officer is fast collecting the evidence based on which we can plead for the hanging of the accused in the court of law,” he said, requesting anonymity.

    Rubbishing allegations that the accused are being shielded by destroying evidence related to the case in the garb of demolishing parts of the resort, he said there has been no tampering with the evidence.

    Asked why the VIP guest, who finds a mention in Bhandari’s chat with her friend that has now gone viral and to whom she was asked to offer “extra service” for money at the resort, is yet to be brought under the ambit of the probe, the official emphatically said he will also be included.

    “It is, in fact, in our efforts to find out about him that we have summoned Ankita’s friend from Jammu. The investigation will be carried forward on the basis of his interrogation,” he said.

    The accused had said they had pushed Bhandari into the Chilla canal on September 18 and her body was found on September 24. He said that samples from her body parts have been sent for a forensic examination to rule out rape and the report is likely to be available soon.

    The probe is being conducted very fast and the truth will soon come out, he said. “People should keep patience. Ankita will get justice,” he asserted.

    The SIT probing the case on Tuesday seized a grey Activa and a black Pulsar motorcycle, which were suspected to be used in the crime.

    The SIT has also summoned a couple who had worked at the resort earlier and others for interrogation, it said. The SIT has found the list of guests staying at the resort on the day of the incident.

    It has also collected physical evidence and is examining electronic evidence such as CCTV footage and mobile call records.

    The main accused Pulkit Arya is the son of former Bharatiya Janata Party leader Vinod Arya, who was expelled by the party when Pulkit’s name cropped up in the case.

    Also on Wednesday, an RSS office bearer who had uploaded an objectionable post on social media against the kin of Bhandari after her murder was booked for sedition and spreading caste animosity.

    “A case has been registered against Vipin Karnwal, an RSS functionary, at the Raiwala police station under the IT act for sedition and spreading caste animosity,” Rishikesh SDM Dinesh Chandra Dhaundiyal said.

    Karnwal’s social media post had sparked tension in Raiwala and Rishikesh with protests at different places.

    The highway to Delhi was blocked by protesters on Wednesday too but they lifted the blockade after an assurance from the police that a case will be lodged against Karnwal.

  • Plea in SC seeking exemption for lawyers from wearing black coats, gowns during summer

    By PTI

    NEW DELHI: A plea has been filed in the Supreme Court seeking exemption for lawyers from wearing black coats and gowns in the apex court as well as the high courts across the country during summer.

    The plea has sought a direction to state bar councils to amend their rules and decide the time period when lawyers would be exempted from wearing black coats and gowns depending upon the fact as to when the summer peaks in the particular state.

    The plea has been filed by lawyer Shailendra Mani Tripathi.

    Wearing coats during torrid summer makes it difficult for lawyers to move from one court to another, it said.

    Lawyers’ dress code is governed by the Bar Council of India Rules under the Advocates Act, 1961, and they make it mandatory for an advocate to wear a black coat with a white shirt and a white neckband.

    Under the rules, wearing an advocate’s gown is optional except when the lawyer is appearing in the Supreme Court or in a high court.

  • Himachal Pradesh HC mourns demise of 16 lawyers during COVID-19 pandemic

    By PTI

    SHIMLA: The Himachal Pradesh High Court here mourned the death of 16 advocates, including the former chairman of the bar council, during the COVID-19 pandemic.

    Acting Chief Justice Ravi Malimath and judges Tarlok Singh Chauhan, Sureshwar Thakur, Vivek Singh Thakur, Ajay Mohan Goel, Sandeep Sharma, Chander Bhusan Barowalia, Jyotsna Rewal Dua and Satyen Vaidya were present at a full court reference held in virtual mode for this purpose on Friday.

    Speaking on the occasion, Malimath said former chairman of Bar Council of Himachal Pradesh Ramakant Sharma was a soft-spoken, honest and hard-working individual.

    It is very difficult to encompass in a few words Sharma’s distinguished career, he added.

    The acting chief justice said a lawyer’s death was like a death in the family.

    “We have lost 16 lawyers in our family due to COVID-19. Most of them were budding lawyers who had a bright future ahead of them,” he added.

    Malimath offered his condolences on the demise of Sharma, H P Singh, Guljar Singh Rathore, R K Chauva, Pardeep Sharma, Chhatar Singh Thakur and Veena Devi of Shimla district.

    The acting chief justice expressed grief on the demise of advocates of Kinnaur district, Harish Chander Negi and Naseeb Singh Negi.

    He also offered his condolences on the death of advocates Vijay Mohan Dutt, Hari Ram Verma and Aseem Sharma of Solan district, R K Handa of Bilaspur, Beli Ram Rana of Kullu, and Suresh Thakur and B K Sood of Kangra.

    Malimath assured the members of the bereaved families that the entire judicial family was standing by them in their crisis.

    Advocate General Ashok Sharma, bar council chairman Ajay Kochhar, HP High Court Bar Association president Nareshwar Singh Chandel and Assistant Solicitor General of India Balram Sharma also addressed the full court reference.

    A two-minute silence was also observed as a mark of respect. Registrar General Virender Singh conducted the proceedings. Other registrars of the court were also present on the occasion.

  • Editorial: Conspiracy to construct the Islamic Republic of India by Congress now for securing power by secession-ism and fundamentalism

    Rahul Gandhi was born in Christian family in Italy. There is Vatican City right there. This is the reason that Rahul Gandhi is with the hand of Christian missionaries. At the time of the Gujarat assembly election, the Christian cleric had given a fatwa that the Nationalist Party BJP should not be voted. Similarly, during the Karnataka assembly elections, the Christian Archbishop had issued a fatwa that the BJP should not be voted.

    Similarly, the fundamentalists and separatists are also in the hands of the Congress. The Congress is a supporter of the Hurriyat. With the help of Pakistan, he is looking at the power of unleashing India and trying to grab power.

    Under the conspiracy, today Congress has supported the conspiracy the establishment of the Shariat Courts to set up separate courts for Muslims, and the fundamentalist Muslim Personal Law Board has supported the Congress.

    Actress Koina Mitra has given the people who advocate Sharia law!

    The All India Muslim Personal Law Board is now planning to open Darul-kaja-ie Shariat court in all the districts of the country to resolve issues according to Islamic laws. This proposal will be presented in the meeting of the Muslim Personal Law Board in Delhi on July 15 for discussion. The Law Board is considered to be the largest organization of Muslims in the country.

    On the other hand, against the ruling of the Muslim Law Board from BJP to SP, they are standing against this decision. BJP spokesperson Meenakshi Lekhi also blamed the All India Muslim Personal Law Board on this matter. “You can discuss religious matters, but the judiciary is important in this country. Sharia courts have no place in the villages and districts of the country. The courts of the country work under the law. Our country is not the Islamic Republic of India. ”

    This is the case – it is significant that the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) had said that it would consider increasing lawyers to introduce lawyers, judges and common people to Shariah law.

    Since Rahul Gandhi has been the President of the Congress since then, he has been forming the form of openly polynomial Brahmin and dividing Hindus and becoming the biggest supporter of radicalism and separatism. Following the policy of divide and rule like the British, they have dreamed of becoming the Yen-Ken-Rukt Prime Minister.

    We hope that they will definitely dream of becoming Prime Minister, but do not try to dissolve the unity of India.