Nearly seven thousand advocates of Calcutta High Court Bar Association are likely to go for a week-long cease work from Tuesday against, what they claim, a shortage of judges.

The decision was taken at the general body meeting of the Bar Association and it has been communicated to Chief Justice S S Nijjar through a letter.

The president of the Bar Association, Amjad Ali, told mediapersons that for the last 25 years the Calcutta High Court has not been running with its full strength.

“At present, there are 39 judges against the sanctioned post of 60 judges. Four more judges will retire in January, which would bring down the number to 35,” Ali said, adding that the Bar Association has been repeatedly requesting the High Court to fill up the vacant posts.

He said the laws laid down by the Supreme Court in the time-bound appointment of judges have not been followed. “My question is why the Supreme Court and the Calcutta High Court failed to comply with its own law on the appointment of judges,” he said.

Stating that the procedure of appointment of judges should be initiated six months before the retirement of a judge, Ali said the timeframe fixed by the Supreme Court on the issue has not been followed.

He said a section of lawyers were disappointed over the behaviour of some judges to wards junior advocates.

HC sets 18-month deadline for BD market renovation
The Calcutta High Court on Friday directed the Bidhan Nagar Municipality and the state government to complete the redevelopment of BD market at Salt Lake within 18 months. A Division Bench comprising Chief Justice S S Nijjar and Justice Biswanath Somadder also directed the municipality to restore the BD Park, after redevelopment of the market is complete. Col Benimadhab Nandi, a resident of Salt Lake, had filed a PIL in August 2008 alleging that the municipality had encroached upon a portion of BD park.

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