Advocates in Hyderabad are calling for a new law to be enacted in order to protect them from physical, verbal, and immoral attacks. Advocates M Venkanna and P Vishnu Vardhana Rao of the Indian Association of People’s Lawyers Civil Liberties Committee made the call after two recent incidents in Telangana State. The first was the brutal attack on Advocate P Yugandhar by local MLA’s men, while the second involved Cherlapalli Central Prison Superintendent Santhosh Kumar Roy’s verbal attack on Advocate D Suresh Kumar. The advocates are demanding that the government bring in a new “Advocates Protection Act” to safeguard their profession.
Advocacy has long been seen as a noble profession, with lawyers representing others for centuries. However, there has recently been an increase in attacks against advocates. The incidents in Telangana State are particularly concerning for the legal community. The attack on Yugandhar was not registered under the appropriate sections of the law, which may indirectly protect those responsible for the attack. Advocates are calling for justice for Yugandhar and for legal action to be taken against those involved in the attack.
As for the incident involving Suresh Kumar, he was assisting an undertrial prisoner in writing a complaint against jail staff when Santhosh Kumar Roy launched a verbal attack on him. Advocates argue that such comments interfere with the judicial process and are contemptuous. They are calling on Roy to apologize for his comments against Suresh Kumar.
The advocates are urging their colleagues to stand in solidarity with Yugandhar and to demand legal protection for all advocates. They are also demanding that the government bring in a new law to safeguard their profession.
