PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Dehradun
Advocates across Uttarakhand protested in support of their demands on Saturday, affecting works related to the courts in the State. This was the sixth consecutive day of their protest and because of the strike, many people and clients faced various problems. Court related work was affected and people who had urgent cases were left waiting outside court premises. In Dehradun, the advocates demonstrated on the road outside the district courts.
Bar Council of Uttarakhand chairman Rakesh Gupta said that the strike was “fully successful” in every district of the State. According to him, the message from bar association across the State ensured that no advocate was working on the day. Gupta said that this unity shows the collective strength of advocates. He added that whenever the government allots land for new court buildings, it should also allot land for the chambers of advocates. He argued that if the government had done this earlier, the present situation would not come. Gupta said advocates spend their lives fighting for justice to others, but today they are forced to stand on the roads to fight for their own rights, which is unfortunate and disappointing.
He also warned that if required, all advocates from across Uttarakhand could be called to Dehradun for a large protest in the coming days. He said they are ready to take out big rallies and marches if the government does not respond to their demands soon. However, he mentioned that for now, they had decided to observe only one –day complete strike on Saturday, though their main protest has already entered its sixth day.
During the strike, advocates raised slogans demanding the construction of chambers. Dehradun Bar Association president Manmohan Kandwal motivated the advocates to stand in support of their demands.
Dehradun Bar Association secretary Rajbeer Singh Bisht said that their protest in Dehradun had entered its sixth day and that their demand is not new. Advocates have been requesting land for chambers for the past three years, but the government has not taken any concrete step. He pointed out that the government has recently allotted Rs 260 crore for building nursing house facilities. However, with nearly 11,000 advocates in Dehradun five bigha land is not sufficient for their needs. He clarified that the advocates are not opposing the project, but they want equal attention to their demand for chambers. He said advocates need proper working space to serve the public better.
