STATE TIMES NEWS
JAMMU: Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh High Court while expunging the remarks made by Srinagar Chief Judicial Magistrate that lawyers level unnecessary allegations against judicial officers to facilitate personal convenience, observed that Bar and Bench are two chariots of justice and lawyers deserve same respect as Judges.
This significant order has been passed in petition filed by petitioners who have challenged order dated March 9, 2022, passed by the Chief Judicial Magistrate, Srinagar, whereby application filed by petitioners for transfer of case under Section 12 of 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, was declined.
After hearing both the sides, Justice Sanjay Dhar observed that it appears that the main grouse of petitioners is that their application for modification or vacation of order dated November 8, 2021, passed by the 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 counsel for the petitioners and the Magistrate, which forced the petitioners to approach Chief Judicial Magistrate, Srinagar seeking transfer of proceedings from Court of trial Magistrate. The Chief Judicial Magistrate has, vide impugned order rightly declined to transfer the proceedings from the Court of learned trial Magistrate, but while doing so, the Chief Judicial Magistrate has made certain sweeping remarks against advocates by stating that advocates level unnecessary allegations against the Judicial Officers in order to facilitate their personal convenience.
Justice Sanjay Dhar further observed that there can be no doubt, that the grounds urged by petitioners, seeking transfer of their case from the Court of trial Magistrate to any other Court of competent jurisdiction, are not cogent.
Justice Sanjay Dhar observed that the sweeping remarks that have been made by the 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 leveling 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. “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 Chief Judicial Magistrate, as such, deserve to be expunged,” observed Court, and added that while upholding the order declining to transfer the case passed by Chief Judicial Magistrate Srinagar, 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 trial Magistrate to dispose of the application of the petitioners for modification of order dated November 8, 2021 expeditiously, preferably within a period of 15 days from date a copy of this order is made available to the said Court.