A section of Calcutta High Court lawyers on Monday started a dharna in front of the courtroom of a judge, protesting his alleged bias in favour of BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari.
On the same day, posters were seen at Jodhpur Park, the south Kolkata neighbourhood where the judge lives, and around his chamber in the high court building.
The judge had earlier stayed proceedings against Adhikari, the leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly, in 27 cases and restrained police from taking any coercive measure against him, including arrest.
The posters, all of them alike, make several allegations against the judge. They say: “Pardons all criminal cases against Suvendu Adhikari. Stays all investigations and orders no future FIR. Resides at an illegal property. Removes rightful protection accorded to Abhishek Banerjee’s sister-in-law even after being harassed by ED at 12 in the midnight.”
Abhishek is chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s nephew and second-in-command in the Trinamul Congress.
Kolkata police said they had not received any complaint in connection with the posters outside the residence of the judge, but a probe had been started.
“We are investigating the matter. There is no formal complaint till now,” an officer of Lake police station said on Monday evening.
Sources said the police had collected CCTV footage from the judge’s neighbourhood and were “trying to locate the offenders through the available footage”.
The judge had earlier issued an interim order saying the state would have no liberty to lodge a criminal case against Adhikari without the court’s approval.
Several rounds of scuffles occurred when protesting lawyers tried to prevent other lawyers from entering the courtroom of the judge. Advocate Billwadal Bhattacharya later informed Chief Justice Prakash Srivastava about the incidents.
The Chief Justice then convened a meeting with representatives of the Bar Association, Bar Library Club and Incorporate Law Society, where representatives of other lawyers’ unions were also invited.
In the meeting, it was decided that henceforth no one would be allowed to hold a demonstration inside the high court building.
Lawyers who want to boycott a judge may do so, but the lawyers who are willing to take part in hearings before that judge cannot be prevented from entering his or her courtroom, the meeting decided.
It was also decided that strong measures would be taken against lawyers found agitating in front of any courtroom. The decision was conveyed to the agitating lawyers.
In courtroom of the judge against whom some lawyers were protesting, all the cases were called but proceedings could not take place because of the absence of lawyers. None of the lawyers from the state panel attended the judge’s court.