The Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana (BCPH) Tuesday condemned the raids conducted by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) at the residence and office of a woman lawyer in Chandigarh earlier in the day. The lawyersтАЩ body also termed the raids тАЬillegalтАЭ and тАЬunjustifiedтАЭ.
A statement by Suvir Sidhu, Chairman of Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana, said, тАЬThe Council has been informed about raids been conducted by NIA at the residence-cum-law office of one of our advocates on roll namely Dr Shelly Sharma, a senior practising lawyer at High Court of Punjab and Haryana and District Courts, Chandigarh.тАЭ
The statement further read, тАЬInvestigating agencies are expected to be fair and operate consistently with constitutional norms, but such raids being conducted by a premier agency, on baseless grounds is reflective of such police excesses. The grounds and manner on/in which these raids were conducted are a matter of grave concern for the entire lawyersтАЩ community in particular and litigants in general. Advocates are protected under special attorney-client privilege and the right of each citizen to pursue his/her legal remedies by engaging a lawyer of choice.тАЭ
тАЬThe NIA cannot raid a lawyerтАЩs residence-cum-legal office in this manner and look into privileged communication, as has been done in this case whereby phones and other electronic means have been seized. Such raids can only be understood to be purposely designed to intimidate and deter the advocates from pursuing the cases on behalf of accused/victims/convicts,тАЭ the statement added.
The BCPH said that it has viewed the тАЬunconscionable condemnable deliberate acts of false intimidation and overreachтАЭ against its advocate on roll тАЬvery seriouslyтАЭ. The council further requested the director general of NIA to immediately supervise the actions, take due note of the тАЬexcess/take appropriate action and restore the rights, dignity and pride of the legal fraternity which has been deeply infringedтАЭ.
Meanwhile, the Punjab and Haryana High Court Bar Association passed a resolution Tuesday and termed the raid тАЬwholly impermissible and a direct interference in the judicial process of discharging professional duties by a lawyerтАЭ. The bar association also condemned the тАЬunlawful interventionтАЭ by NIA.
As per the resolution letter signed by the president of the bar association, Santokhwinder Singh Grewal, and its honorary secretary Vishal Aggarwal, тАЬThe NIA cannot raid a lawyerтАЩs residence cum legal office in this manner and seek privilege communication between the lawyer and the client. Such raids tantamount to direct interference in the judicial proceedings and is nothing but a criminal contempt of court.тАЭ
The bar association further said that it strongly condemns such deliberate acts of intimidation and overreach against the advocate on roll very seriously. тАЬThe executive committee further resolved to abstain from work Tuesday,тАЭ said the bar association.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) Tuesday carried out raids in Punjab, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh in connection with a case registered to probe the тАЬemerging nexusтАЭ between terrorists, gangsters and drug smugglers.
The raids were carried out at 50 places, including residences of gangsters, officials said.
