Top office-bearers resign from SDBA

SURAT, Nov 18: Lawyers of the Surat District Bar Association are meeting here on Thursday to finalise a date for an emergency meeting of the...

SURAT, Nov 18: Lawyers of the Surat District Bar Association are meeting here on Thursday to finalise a date for an emergency meeting of the nine-member council that will deliberate on the resignation of secretary Shashi Rajkotia, followed by the resignation of Bar Council president Ashit Mehta.

Rajkotia8217;s resignation was apparently triggered by the fact that he was not offered a seat on the dais at the recent Lok Adalat in the district court. Some circles are interpreting it as a mark of protest against Mehta, who reciprocated by submitting his papers, even though he clarified that the Lok Adalat was not organised by the SDBA.

Neither resignation has been accepted; their fates will be decided at the emergency meeting.

The SDBA crisis seems to have been triggered by Saturday8217;s Lok Adalat, which was jointly organised by the Gujarat Legal Services Authority and the Surat District Legal Services Authority. The SDBA was a joint organiser of the adalat and was represented by Mehta on the dais.

While talking to Express Newsline, Mehta said though the SDBA had had nothing to do with the organisation of the Lok Adalat, he had tendered his resignation as Rajkotia8217;s resignation had been prompted by his Mehta8217;s presence on the dais.

8220;I did not insist on a place on the dais. Besides, even dignitaries like secretary of Gujarat Legal Services Authority N G Parikh was seated among the audience despite being a High Court judge8221;, he said.

8220;Rajkotia is a senior advocate and he has resigned because of some misunderstanding8221;, Mehta said, adding that it was his moral duty to resign as there was a crisis in the bar association.

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8220;The issue has been blown out of proportion. Hopefully, it8217;ll end on a positive note with both of us withdrawing our resignations8221;, he said.

While Rajkotia was not available for comment, his brother Dhirubhai Rajkotia, also a practicising advocate, said that Shashi Rajkotia had resigned from the council as he felt insulted. 8220;It is a tradition that the president and secretary are always given prominent positions. This was violated during the Lok Adalat,8221; he said.

The impasse that has now gripped the SDBA is likely to be solved once the council meets to decide the fate of the two office-bearers. Advocates are meeting at the court committee room to finalise the date for the council meeting.