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Lawyers stayed away from Calcutta High Court today as part of a three-day ceasework citing hot and humid conditions, causing harrassment to thousands of litigants and prompting the Chief Justice to term the advocates' action as "irritating and painful".
All the court rooms were open today with the judges in their seats, but absence of lawyers led to cases not being taken up for hearing. Voicing unhappiness with the decision of the lawyers not to attend court from today till Friday owing to hot weather conditions, Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice Joymalyo Bagchi said that if people in other professions like police sergeants, nurses, lawyers in lower courts, etc, can work, it should not be so difficult for them. The Chief Justice also likened the attitude of a section of lawyers practising at the high court with that of school children.
The division bench comprising the Chief Justice and Justice Bagchi directed that if any lawyer wanted, he could appear in court in white shirt and pants when some advocates informed it that all the lawyers' rooms were locked and they could not get their coats and gowns. The High Court Bar Association had yesterday taken a majority resolution not to attend court from June 10 to June 13 owing to excessive heat and humidity.
The Chief Justice had asked the lawyers to attend court in the interest of litigants, but the advocates stuck to their decision.
The high court Bar Association secretary Rana Mukherjee was not available for comment. The high court had reopened on June 1 after a fortnight-long summer break.
