Bangalore: Bar Council Charges Police with 'Excesses' in Mar 2 Violence
Bangalore, Mar 4 (PTI): The Karnataka State Bar Council today charged police with committing excesses on lawyers in the March 2 violence at the city civil court premises when mediapersons were attacked by a section of lawyers and admitted that some Bar members had assaulted the media.
Bar Council President K N Subba Reddy demanded shifting of DGP Shankar Bidari and City Police Commissioner Jyotiprakash Mirji, holding them responsible for "police excesses' on lawyers that day.
He conceded some members had assaulted mediapersons, protesting their presence to cover the appearance of former minister and mining baron G Janardhana Reddy in a CBI court in connection with an illegal mining case and said strict action against them as per the Association laws.
Accusing the media of one sided reporting, the council in a resolution yesterday said it would not represent any media house in future litigations "for showing advocates in poor light" in the last few months.
"We will take appropriate action and even take police help if they come forward to identify the lawyers.We have shot the entire incident on video and we have to see if the vandals in black robes were indeed advocates or miscreants who infiltrated into the complex," he claimed.
He said most advocates are peace loving and the council was eager to restore confidence of the public in them.
Reddy alleged policemen in civil dress had damaged over 100 two-wheelers and cars belonging to lawyers and beat up 'innocent' advocates leaving the complex after the violence.
He alleged "external hands" were involved in the violence and said he had information that some persons had purchased 100 black advocate's jackets from the Advocates's society in the complex premises.
Yesterday, four advocates, including Bangalore Advocates Association General Secretary A P Ranganath, were arrested in connection with the violence.
The arrests came after media in the state rejected the judicial probe into the attack as an "eyewash" and demanded the guilty lawyers be brought to book immediately.