On Thursday, lawyers in Meghalaya staged a boycott of court proceedings and marched through the streets of Shillong. Their protest centers on calls for the resignation of Advocate General Amit Kumar. This action follows allegations regarding his remarks made during court sessions, which have raised concerns about the effectiveness of his office.
The statewide show of solidarity extended beyond the capital, with the Tura Bar Association boycotting court work and refusing to take up cases in support of the agitation led by the High Court of Meghalaya Bar Association (HCMBA) and Shillong Bar Association (SBA). “This is not only the Shillong Bar Association or the High Court Bar Association. Gautam also questioned the Advocate General’s office engaging lawyers from outside Meghalaya in cases, including matters he described as relatively minor. In Tura, lawyers chose to demonstrate solidarity by completely abstaining from court work rather than travelling to Shillong. The Shillong protest culminated in a march and sit-in, followed by the submission of a memorandum to the Governor.
The association discussed the issue at an emergency general meeting on August 21 and unanimously resolved to back the Shillong-based bar bodies.
Senior advocate Kishore Chand Gautam said the protest represented the collective position of bar associations across the state and was not confined to Shillong. This involves Bar Associations from across Meghalaya,” Gautam said. He questioned the appointment of Kumar’s son to represent the state in the Supreme Court and said the bar would file Right to Information applications seeking details of expenditure incurred by the Advocate General and his legal team. The Tura Bar Association’s secretary said its members decided to follow whatever course of action the HCMBA and SBA adopted. Gautam said the agitation would continue until Kumar resigned or was removed.
