While taking the most dignified, disciplined and determined stand, the Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court has in a most commendable, cogent, composed and creditworthy judgment titled Latief Ahmad Rather V/s Shafeeqa Bhat in CRM (M) No. 94/2022 CrlM No. 327/2022 and cited in 2022 LiveLaw (JKL) 104 pronounced on April 8, 2022 minced just no words to make it crystal clear that the advocates are the officers of the Court and deserve the same respect and dignity as is being given to the Judicial Officers and Presiding Officers of the Courts.

What is most remarkable is that the Single Judge Bench comprising of Hon’ble Mr Justice Sanjay Dhar has minced absolutely no words to elegantly, eloquently and effectively hold that, “Bench and Bar are two wheels of the chariot of justice. Both are equal and no one is superior to the other. The members of the Bar, as such, deserve the utmost respect and dignity.” It is worth emulating by all the Courts in India including the Supreme Court where we even witnessed none other than one of the most eminent and senior lawyer – Kapil Sibal among others just recently expressing his total disenchantment with the Apex Court way of functioning which just cannot be lightly brushed aside as he has more than 50 years of most distinguished experience as is acknowledged even by his worst critics.

The Bench must definitely take most seriously when senior and eminent lawyers like Kapil Sibal, Dushyant Dave among other eminent and senior lawyers point out the glaring deficiencies in the working of the Apex Court and same is the case with High Courts and other lower courts also! It also definitely merits no reiteration that only when Bench and Bar work in tandem and resolving all their differences most amicably that the judiciary can really function effectively as a torchbearer of justice in whom the common person holds maximum faith!

At the outset, this most laudable, learned, landmark and latest judgment authored by a Single Judge Bench of the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh comprising of Hon’ble Mr Justice Sanjay Dhar sets the ball rolling by first and foremost putting forth in para 1 that, “The petitioners have challenged order dated 09.03.2022, passed by learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Srinagar, whereby transfer application filed by the petitioners for transfer of case under Section 12 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, titled Lateef Ahmad Rather and Ors vs. Shafeeka Bhat, from the Court of Judicial Magistrate 1st Class (2nd Additional Munsiff), Srinagar to any other Court of competent jurisdiction in District Srinagar, has been declined.”

To put things in perspective, the Bench then envisages in para 2 that, “It is averred in the petition that the petition under Section 12 of the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act, filed by the respondent against the petitioners herein, is absolutely false and frivolous and when the petitioners approached the trial Magistrate for modification of the order passed by it, the said application was not decided despite a number of requests having been made by the petitioners to the learned trial Magistrate. It is further averred that the remarks of the trial Magistrate against the petitioners have not been in good taste being abusive in nature, which compelled them to approach the Chief Judicial Magistrate Srinagar with an application for transfer of the case from the Court of trial Magistrate to any other court of competent jurisdiction. It is contended that learned Chief Judicial Magistrate Srinagar, vide the impugned order, rejected the prayer of the petitioners without understanding the gravity of the matter.”

Needless to say, the Bench then observes in para 3 that, “I have learned counsel for the petitioners and perused the impugned order and the documents annexed to the petition.”

As it turned out, the Bench then lays bare in para 4 that, “It appears that the main grouse of the petitioners is that their application for modification or vacation of order dated 08.11.2021, passed by the learned trial Magistrate in ex-parte against the petitioners, is not being considered on its merits expeditiously. It also appears that there has been some exchange of harsh words between the learned counsel for the petitioners and the learned Magistrate, which has forced the petitioners to approach the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Srinagar seeking transfer of proceedings from the Court of trial Magistrate. The Chief Judicial Magistrate, has vide the impugned order rightly declined to transfer the proceedings from the Court of learned trial Magistrate, but, while doing so, the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate has made certain sweeping remarks against the advocates by stating that the advocates level unnecessary allegations against the Judicial Officers in order to facilitate their personal convenience.”

It is a no-brainer that the Bench then very rightly observes in para 5 that, “There can be no doubt, that the grounds urged by the petitioners, seeking transfer of their case from the Court of trial Magistrate to any other Court of competent jurisdiction, are not cogent. Merely because the learned Magistrate has failed to dispose of the application of the petitioners, is not a ground to transfer the case. It is also not a ground for transfer of a case if there is exchange of some hot words between the Court and the counsel. Thus the decision of learned Chief Judicial Magistrate Srinagar to decline the transfer of the matter from the trial Magistrate, is legally correct and cannot be interfered with.”

Most significantly and also most commendably, the Bench then while adding a rider minces absolutely no words to mandate in para 6 that, “However, the sweeping remarks that have been made by the learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, were uncalled for and unnecessary for the decision of the case. There may be stray incidents where the advocates have resorted to levelling of allegations against the Judicial Officers in order to seek transfer of their cases from one Court to other to suit their convenience, but then this cannot be generalized. The advocates are the officers of the Court and deserve the same respect and dignity as is being given to the Judicial Officers and Presiding Officers of the Courts. Bench and Bar are two wheels of the chariot of justice. Both are equal and no one is superior to the other. The members of the Bar, as such, deserve the utmost respect and dignity There may be some rotten apples in the profession, as is true of every profession, but to say that the advocates generally adopt these tactics is not the correct position. The remarks of the Chief Judicial Magistrate, as such, deserve to be expunged.”

Finally, the Bench then concludes by decisively holding in the final para 7 that, “Accordingly, while upholding the order declining to transfer the case passed by learned Chief Judicial Magistrate Srinagar, the remarks made by the learned Magistrate against the advocates are expunged and it is directed that the same shall not form part of the impugned order. A further direction is issued to the learned trial Magistrate to dispose of the application of the petitioners for modification of order dated 08.11.2021 expeditiously, preferably within a period of 15 days from the date a copy of this order is made available to the said Court. Copies of this order be sent to learned Chief Judicial Magistrate, Srinagar and Judicial Magistrate (2nd Additional Munsiff) Srinagar.”

In a nutshell, we thus see that the Single Judge Bench of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh High Court comprising of Hon’ble Mr Justice Sanjay Dhar has made it indubitably clear that, “Bench and Bar are two wheels of the chariot of justice. Both are equal and no one is superior to the other. The members of the Bar, as such, deserve the utmost respect and dignity.” If this is actually ensured on ground then there is no reason why lawyers will go on strike protesting against judicial officers misbehaving with them! There can be just no denying or disputing it!

To top it all, it is also certainly most heartening to note that the newly designated Chief Justice of India – Hon’ble Mr Justice UU Lalit who will take oath as 49th CJI on August 27, 2022 has made it indubitably clear that he will always certainly take the Bar also along with him in ensuring diligently that things actually work most smoothly in the top court and also the genuine grievances of senior lawyers are addressed most effectively so that there is nothing left to complain about! This is definitely the crying need of the hour also!

No doubt, all the Judges in India must pay heed to what Hon’ble Mr Justice Sanjay Dhar has said about advocates being accorded utmost respect just as is accorded to the judicial officers and the presiding officers of the Courts and comply with accordingly. Only then can our courts really function smoothly and serve the real purpose for which the courts are actually meant – serve justice within the shortest possible time without compromising in anyway with the quality of justice so that the litigants gain the most for whom the courts are actually meant! No denying it!

Sanjeev Sirohi, Advocate,
s/o Col (Retd) BPS Sirohi, A 82, Defence Enclave,
Sardhana Road, Kankerkhera, Meerut - 250001, Uttar Pradesh