TNAA seeks priority for judges, lawyers in vaccination

Expressing shock that the list of priority segment does not include members of the legal fraternity, TNAA president S Prabakaran said, “It is a case of glaring omission or a deliberate discrimination committed by the officials concerned, as the essentiality of a robust judicial machinery cannot be either undermined or underrated.”

Pointing out that no courts and tribunals in the country were able to function to their capacity since last March and several lakh of cases were gathering dust in judicial and quasi-judicial fora because any relaxation in norms might cause a spurt in cases, Prabakaran added: “It should be borne in mind that virtual courts and online filing and hearing of cases are only stopgap arrangements, as they can never fully replace a physical, in-person court proceeding.” Thus, he added, not including lawyers in the priority list of professionals eligible for inoculation for COVID-19 in the first phase of the vaccination drive was unfair and illegal. The TNAA president and Bar Council of India co-chairman warned of approaching competent judicial forums to obtain necessary judicial orders and directives if lawyers were not included in the priority list.