New Delhi, Oct 29 Supreme Court judge Sanjay Kumar on Thursday barred advocates from approaching the officers or staff of his court after the son of an advocate-on-record allegedly used abusive language against a woman staffer over the phone.
An advocate-on-record (AoR) is a specially qualified lawyer authorised by the Supreme Court to act and plead on behalf of clients in the apex court. Only AoRs can file appearances, petitions or documents in the top court, ensuring procedural compliance and representation.
After the purported abuse was mentioned in court, Justice Kumar called upon the AoR concerned and said, “Who spoke to her on the phone? You spoke to her? Your son spoke to her, and you have obviously not taught him how to speak to a lady. Perhaps it’s time you did so.”
Announcing the restriction, the judge said, “As a consequence of your action, from now on, all physical appearances will be immediately given as soon as the case is over. No one will speak to my court officers about it, be it in person or on the phone. No one will approach them or speak to them.”
Justice Kumar said it would be wrong to describe the advocate’s son as a gentleman, given the insinuating language he used against the court officer.
“He used abusive language; who does he think he is? Is he a lawyer?” the judge asked.
He also asked whether any elected member of the Supreme Court Bar Association was present in the courtroom, and said the advocate should be referred to the Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association (SCAORA).
“If you can’t teach your family members how to speak to a woman, then perhaps they have no right to even address a woman. Don’t even dare to make a mention now! Henceforth, I am serious about this. No one will approach the court officers. I will not have my court officers abused like this,” Justice Kumar said.
Underlining that the staff worked with great sincerity, he added, “They do their job with utmost diligence. You make all kinds of insinuations, using all kinds of abusive language. There is no limit to this, to the extent that I can go on. You made me lose my temper first thing in the morning.
(PTI News)
