Madras HC rejects BJP advocate’s plea to quash suspension order

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court rejected the plea of BJP advocate Alexis Sudhakar seeking to quash the order of the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, prohibiting him from practicing law followed by the charge against him alleging supply of arms to a notorious criminal.

Directing Alexis Sudhakar to cooperate with the bar council and complete the disciplinary proceedings to prove his innocence, a division bench of Justices SM Subramaniam and M Jothiraman rejected his petition to quash the suspension order.

The bench also refused to set a time limit to conclude the disciplinary proceedings as fixing a time limit to a quasi-judicial authority or any judicial forums would undoubtedly cause inconvenience and referred the legal principles laid down by a Constitutional bench of the Supreme Court in the case of High Court Bar Association Allahabad vs the State of Uttar Pradesh and others.

Senior counsel V Raghavachari on behalf of the petitioner submitted that as his client was an advocate belonging to a certain political party and appeared for criminal cases against the interest of the ruling party, the police were made to book a case against him. He doesn't have any involvement in the foisted case as alleged by the police, said the senior counsel.

Raghavachari also objected to the suspension order issued merely based on the complaint received from the Chengalpattu SP without verification of the petitioner’s conduct.

The bench intervened and observed that because the suspension is not a punishment, but an interim order, it doesn't need prior notice.

Advocate Chandrasekar on behalf of the Bar Council, submitted that as the petitioner was booked in seven criminal cases and some of them were serious in nature, the Bar passed a resolution suspending him to protect the nobility of the profession.

He also cited section 35 of the Advocates Act, 1961, and submitted that the Bar Council has the power to take disciplinary action against an advocate on professional misconduct.

A council has been constituted to probe into the allegation and the disciplinary proceeding is under way, hence the process will be completed expeditiously.

On June 26, 2024, the Mamallapuram police arrested a history sheeter Sirkali Sathiya as he tried to attack the police personnel during vehicle inspection. Following that, the police also booked Alexis as he supplied arms to Sathiya and charged him under sections 294b, 353, 307, and 506 (2) of IPC and 25 (1a) of the Arms Act.

Based on the complaint received from Chengalpattu SP, the Bar Council of TamilNadu and Puducherry on July 5, 2024, issued an order suspending Alexis from practicing law in any courts or tribunals, as he was booked in seven criminal cases.