More Karnataka Cong legislators backing Shivakumar travel to Delhi
Bengaluru (PTI): Another batch of legislators backing Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar have flown to New Delhi to meet Congress high command leaders, amid a power tussle within the ruling party in Karnataka over the CM change issue, party sources said on Monday.
According to sources, at least six legislators have landed in the national capital on Sunday night.
Few more legislators are likely to travel soon, to pitch for Shivakumar as CM, they said.
The power tussle within the ruling party has intensified, amid speculation about chief minister change in the state, after the Congress government reached the halfway mark of its five-year term on November 20, citing an alleged "power-sharing" agreement involving CM Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar in 2023.
Among the legislators in Delhi include MLAs H C Balakrishna (Magadi), K M Uday (Maddur), Nayana Motamma (Mudigere), Iqbal Hussain (Ramanagara), Sharath Bachegowd (Hosakote), and Shivaganga Basavaraj (Channagiri), party sources said.
AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge, who is in Bengaluru, is scheduled to travel to Delhi, and Congress top leader Rahul Gandhi is likely to return from trip abroad, sources added.
Last week some legislators, about ten of them, supporting Shivakumar travelled to New Delhi and met Kharge, as the Congress government completed 2.5 years in office on November 20.
Shivakumar, however, had then said he was not aware of legislators travelling to Delhi to meet Kharge.
Following legislators backing Shivakumar travelling to Delhi, CM Siddaramaiah on Saturday held more than an hour long meeting with Kharge at his residence in Bengaluru.
While Siddaramaiah is pushing for a reshuffle of his Cabinet, Shivakumar wants the party to first decide on leadership change, party sources said.
According to several party insiders, if the Congress high command approves the Cabinet reshuffle, it would signal that Siddaramaiah will complete the full five-year term, which will scuttle the chances of Shivakumar from occupying the coveted post.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
BCI urges CJI to take action against Andhra HC judge for sending young lawyer to 24-hour custody
New Delhi (PTI): The Bar Council of India on Wednesday sought the urgent intervention of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant following a "deeply disturbing" incident where a judge of the Andhra Pradesh High Court reportedly sent a young advocate to
24-hour judicial custody over a procedural lapse.
The Bar Council of India (BCI) Chairperson and senior advocate Manan Kumar Mishra, in a formal representation, termed the conduct of Justice Tarlada Rajasekhar Rao "grossly inappropriate" and "damaging to the confidence of the Bar".
“I most respectfully request your Lordship to kindly take immediate institutional cognizance of the matter and call for the video recording of the proceedings, the order passed, and the surrounding circumstances.
“I further request that appropriate administrative action may kindly be considered, including withdrawal of judicial work from the learned Judge pending review, his immediate transfer to some far off High Court, and his nomination for appropriate judicial training/orientation on court management, judicial temperament, Bar-Bench relations, and proportional exercise of contempt/judicial authority,” Mishra wrote.
This representation is made to preserve the “dignity, moral authority and public confidence of the judiciary”, he said, adding, “Judges command the highest respect not by fear, but by fairness, patience, restraint and constitutional humility”.
The communication urged the CJI to intervene at the earliest to ensure that the faith of Bar, particularly young advocates, in the protective and corrective role of the judiciary is restored.
The controversy stems from proceedings on May 5.
According to the BCI, a video circulating online shows Justice Rao rebuking a young advocate who was unable to produce a specific order copy during a hearing.
The letter said that despite the advocate "repeatedly seeking pardon and mercy" and claiming he was in physical pain, the judge remained "unmoved".
The judge allegedly told the lawyer, "now you will learn," and mocked his experience before directing the Registrar and police personnel to take him into custody for 24 hours.
The BCI chairperson said that the judge’s actions lacked proportionality and fairness.
"The dignity of the court is not enhanced when a lawyer is made to beg for grace in open court and is still sent to custody for a procedural lapse," the letter said.
"A young lawyer... is an officer of the Court, still learning, still growing, and entitled to correction without humiliation," it added.
The bar body said that such actions create a "chilling effect" on the legal fraternity, particularly among junior members, and undermine the mutual respect required between the Bench and the Bar.
