Lawyers turn vegetable vendors, delivery boys to make up for lost income

MUMBAI: As Aditya Kashyap sits by his vegetable cart in a bylane of Vasai, he tries not to think about five months ago when he was busy filing bail pleas and snapping up clients in magistrate courts.
The Advocates Act does not permit lawyers to take up any other occupation. But with courts functioning partially and no income during the lockdown, Kashyap has been forced to start selling vegetables to feed his family of six.
Like Kashyap, many independent lawyers have taken up other jobs to stave off starvation.
Some are driving autos while others have turned into delivery boys.
Individual lawyers practising in mofussil courts or district courts constitute more than 95% per cent of the total lawyer population (about 12 lakh) in the country," said Lalit Bhasin, president of the Bar Association of India.
After the lockdown was announced, the judiciary decided they would only attend to urgent matters and through video conferencing. Unlike senior counsels who charge large sums for hearings, a majority of lawyers in the country, especially in lower courts, function on a case-to-case basis for income. Kashyap, for instance, did miscellaneous work in magistrate courts-- filing applications for return of property, bail pleas or cancellation of warrants.
"Saara cash par kaam hota tha, (it used to be cash based work)," said Kashyap, adding that sometimes he made Rs 1,000 in just half an hour. But the police haven't been making too many arrests in the lockdown which has translated into lesser remand applications in court. "For the first two months, my family and I survived on savings. Then, we began to borrow from friends and eventually, I sold off my wife's ornaments. There's still the house rent to pay, school fees for my children besides household expenses. The vegetable cart doesn't bring in much money but helps put food on the table," he said.
A junior lawyer, who handled drafting work for a senior, said he couldn't travel to courts after local trains stopped operations. He now works as a deliveryman with an ecommerce company. "Banks are not keen on offering loans to lawyers. The Bar Council of Gujarat has allowed lawyers to take up jobs or conduct business other than their legal practice to augment their income during the lockdown. But the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa (BCMG) requires us to surrender our sanad (licence to practice) if we wish to take up another occupation," he said. TOI contacted the BCMG to inquire whether any lawyers had surrendered sanad to pursue other occupations and found that none had. One of the reasons could be that re-enrolment for sanad is a time-consuming process.
A female lawyer, who used to handle cheque bouncing cases and mutual consent divorce cases, is now a customer care rep with a private company. "Most cases were simply being adjourned, leaving no scope for any real chargeable work. Anxiety started setting in with no work and so, I decided to take up a job. It pays me around Rs 25,000, nowhere close to the Rs 1 lakh per month I used to make but it keeps me engaged,” she told TOI.
Those who were doing relatively well before the lockdown are also considering looking for other jobs now. A lawyer from Dadar who had been getting steady independent work said he has only got two new matters during the lockdown. "My parents too are lawyers but they are elderly and homebound. Currently, we are dipping into our savings but if courts don't function fully, I will have to find a full time job in any sector where there are vacancies," he said.
On two occasions during lockdown, the BCMG gave out ration kits to lawyers that had fallen on bad times. In April and in May, lawyers who were doing slightly better were tasked with the job of reaching out to their colleagues in distress with the ration kits. "Each kit lasted us a fortnight," said Kashyap.
Resuming full day courts is perhaps a solution, some lawyers believe. Others say that prevailing circumstances have highlighted the need for courts and lawyers to be technologically equipped and move online. “Some have taken up the challenge head-on and utilised their time and resources to cater to what the situation demands. But many continue to struggle due to lack of access,” said a lawyer.
Lower courts need to upgrade and also ensure optimum utilisation of existing equipment. "We need better internet connectivity and jails too need to be equipped with additional infrastructure to enable more proceedings to be conducted virtually,” another lawyer added.
(Kashyap's name has been changed to protect identity)