Stir over court fee hike: Jharkhand lawyers stay away from work

RANCHI: Hearing of around 3,000 cases in Ranchi civil court could not take place as advocates across the state, barring a few in the Jharkhand high court, on Friday abstained from court work following a protest call given by the Jharkhand State Bar Council (JSBC) against the court fee hike by the state government.
Mediation exercise also did not take place in the District Legal Service Authority.
Notably, the state government on February 22, 2022 had hiked the court fee through a notification. Following the protest by the JSBC over the steep increase, the government formed a committee to review the issue.
Subsequently, it passed the court fee amendment bill in the state assembly. The JSBC termed the new provisions as an eye wash saying that the changes were minimal.
The JSBC members decided to stage protest after their attempt to meet Jharkhand chief minister Hemant Soren on the issue on Wednesday failed.
JSBC chairman Rajendra Krishna said, "The strike was almost total all over the state. We would continue the agitation on Saturday as well. Advocates not obeying the JSBC order may face disciplinary action.
The bar associations have been asked to send their representatives for the meeting in Ranchi on Sunday to decide future course of action."