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The high court refused to grant the relief sought to the Mumbai lawyer and said that the lawyer could approach the high court if adequate relief is not granted to him by the appellate authority.
A division bench of the Bombay High Court comprising Justice GS Patel and Justice Neela Gokhale has directed Mumbai lawyer Gunratan Sadavarte to approach the Bar Council of India (BCI) regarding his two-year suspension from practicing law by the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa's disciplinary committee.
The high court granted Sadavarte the liberty to return to the court if the BCI does not consider his appeal or any interim application he files for immediate relief. Sadavarte had originally approached the high court to contest a notice from the BCMG regarding a complaint filed by a former president of the Pimpri Court Bar Association.
The complaint claimed that Sadavarte wore a black coat with a band at public events, including an agitation by MSRTC employees. The high court declined to stay the proceedings and the disciplinary committee suspended Sadavarte's license for two years after holding proceedings.
Sadavarte contested this ruling on the ground that the opponent in the State bar council elections had adjudicated the complaint and that the committee had denied him access to the necessary documents they relied on when making their final decision.
Senior Advocate Darius Khambata and Advocate Makarand Bokare challenged the maintainability of the petition and provided official documents demonstrating that all essential documents had been given to Sadavarte.
The court did not consider the case's merits, instead underscored that the Advocates Act provides a statutory appeal to the BCI. The high court directed Sadavarte to bring his arguments before the BCI while keeping his petition on hold.
Case Title: Gunratan Sadavarte vs Bar Council of Maharashtra & Goa
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