Photos in vakalat vital to ascertain lawyer’s credibility

Justice S Vaidyanathan coming down heavily on the Madras Bar Association for seeking to recall the order directing advocates to affix photographs on Vakalats, said, “Now under the guise of saving genuine advocates, protecting the fraudulent advocates, can’t be accepted. If anyone is aggrieved by the order of this court dated November 6 passed in Crl.O.P, the only remedy is to approach the Apex Court, as section 362 Cr.P.C is a bar for this court to entertain any application either to review or recall the said order.”

“All courts including this court and the Supreme Court, are interested in the welfare of genuine advocates. If the Bar is going to stand on technicalities and protect the fraudulent advocates, this court cannot be a party to it, more particularly with regard to the fate of the litigants,” the judge said added that, “Moreover, this court is more concerned about the moral values in the advocate profession, than the legality of any issue, particularly, in the context of the fraud played by the fraudulent advocates.”

Justice Vaidyanathan also noted that the law profession is already under severe criticism and due to the illegal activities of lawyers in the State, the reputation of lawyers is getting diminished among the public.

If regular practitioners are going to object to the procedures now directed, there will be a time when the respondent/defendant in any of the litigation, will one day withdraw the case of the petitioner and no one much less the judges will be able to verify the genuineness of the lawyers, thereby putting the petitioner/appellant in peril, Justice Vaidyanathan said and noted, “The days are not far to link Aadhar details to verify the genuineness of the advocates.”

He also concluded his order on the note, “If the suggestions/directions are not going to be adhered to, even God can’t save this profession and this institution.”