Bangalore: Advocates Continue Boycott of Courts in Karnataka
Bangalore, Mar 9 (PTI): Advocates across Karnataka today decided to continue their indefinite boycott of courts till the state government concedes their demands, including action against top police officials and media in connection with the violence at the city civil court complex.
More than 3,000 lawyers converged at the court complex responding to a call by Advocates Association of Bangalore and held meetings pressing for transfer of DGP Shankar Bidari and City Police Commissioner Jyothiprakash Mirji.
"We will continue our boycott till our demands are met by the government", President AAB K N Subba Reddy told PTI as the lawyers continued to stay away from courts since the March 2 mayhem in which advocates attacked media and police personnel leaving scores of them injured.
The advocates also wanted action against the media for 'one-sided' reporting of the incidents that have led to a confrontation between them and media and police.
The meetings passed off peacefully as 20 platoons of Karnataka State Reserve Police, four companies of Rapid Action Force and 1000 police personnel had been deployed in and around the complex to ensure law and order, Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Sunil Kumar said.
Reddy said the issue of AAB starting its own TV channel also came up for discussion.
Meanwhile, a section of police personnel observed a "black badge protest" against the alleged assault on them by the advocates.
The government today asked the Judicial Commission of Inquiry headed by Justice R G Vaidyanathan set up to probe the incidents to submit its report within three months.
The commission has been asked to inquire into sequence of events and circumstances and reasons leading to the extensive violence between media persons, advocates and police, a Chief Minister's office release said.
The Commission has also been asked to identify persons and organisations responsible for the incidents and to ascertain whether the police performed their duties diligently.
The city civil court complex turned into a battlefield when sections of lawyers went on the rampage attacking media personnel and police and setting fire to vehicles after objecting to media presence during the appearance of former minister and mining baron G Janardhana Reddy before a CBI court in an illegal mining case.