New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Friday sought responses from the Centre, the Bar Council of India and others on a PIL seeking a bar council in the union territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta took note of the submissions of senior advocate Javid Shaikh, appearing for the Kashmir Advocates Association, and issued notices to the Centre, the BCI and the Registrar General of the High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh.
A state bar council is a statutory body that regulates enrolment of law graduates as lawyers and the practice of law in a state.
The senior lawyer, assisted by advocate Adil Muneer Andrabi, stressed on the need for a bar council in Jammu and Kashmir and sought an interim relief underlining the necessity of government-issued welfare stamps used on pleadings, typically published at the request of a bar council.
He pointed out in the absence of a bar council, the high court was performing the relevant functions.
The bench observed it couldn’t pass an interim order at the present stage and said, “Whatever system is there so far will continue. Is the high court a party? Let the notice go, and let them come.”
The top court posted the hearing after four weeks.
