Bar Council issues notices to 16 lawyers over alleged bench-hunting in Roop Bansal case

The move follows observations made by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in CRM-M-19843-2025 (Roop Bansal vs State of Haryana), where Chief Justice Sheel Nagu, in the open court, flagged concerns over “bench shopping” and warned that such conduct was “destroying the Bar.” The Indian Express had reported that the Bench had asked Bansal’s legal team to produce the advocate who filed a fresh plea in the matter “just to get the case out of a particular Bench.”

The Committee, chaired by Raj Kumar Chauhaan, said the matter was taken up suo motu to “uphold the dignity of the legal profession, ensure the maintenance of legal ethics, and discharge the responsibilities entrusted under law.”

It further wrote, “In the battle of justice and injustice and in between the righteous and wrong, in Mahabharata, the silence of Bhishma and Drona in the Court of Hastinapur, during Draupadi’s humiliation, reveals a timeless truth – when those trained in law and morality remain silent in the face of injustice, the law itself collapses.”

Citing legal maxims and historical analogies, it likened any attempt to subvert judicial processes to an “invasion of the Temple of Justice,” comparable to “the desecration of the Somnath Temple in the 11th century.”

From the records, the Committee said it appeared that Advocate J.K. Singla “orchestrated the game plan” but that it was “highly unbelievable” such an effort could be carried out alone. “There might be some big ingenious mind advocates behind the curtains, which has to be unearthed,” it noted, terming the alleged conduct as “tactful, systematic and in an organized manner.”

The order invoked Section 6(c) and (d) of the Advocates Act, 1961, empowering the Bar Council to take action in cases involving professional misconduct. It also acknowledged the “complexity of tactics such as bench hunting, bar hunting or forum shopping” allegedly adopted by some lawyers and businessmen “for ulterior motives.”

The Committee said it would also seek responses from senior advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi and Mukul Rohatgi “to fairly and comprehensively adjudicate the matter.” Additionally, it invited information, complaints, or any material from advocates and affected persons via its official email and WhatsApp number.

Emphasising that “legal ethics are not optional, they are sacred,” the order warned that any lawyer who manipulates the judicial process “for convenience and gain” is “a menace to society.” Quoting Gandhi, Ambedkar, Roscoe Pound, Lord Denning and Justice Louis Brandeis, the Committee underlined that lawyers are “custodians of justice” and “guardians of constitutional morality.”

“The Bar Council cannot sit idle as a mere spectator. It is the duty of the Committee to trace out the rotten apple/apples from the basket, before all get rotten,” the order concluded.

Bar Council Secretary Gagandeep Jammu, when contacted, said, “As Secretary of the Bar Council, I will be forwarding these notices to the advocates concerned on the allegations of bar shopping. If the Bar Council is satisfied with their explanation, it will close the matter, if not, it has the power to suspend or even cancel their licences.”

The notice further read, “This Committee is also of the view that for the fair inquiry and to look into the unethical measures adopted by some of the advocates, let the information/complaints/any kind of material, if any, be taken from the advocates and the affected persons.”

The matter will be heard at 3 pm on August 16, at the Bar Council’s Chandigarh office.