Bench-hunting allegations: Bar Council panel clears names of 2 HC advocates, associates

A probe committee was constituted by Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana after members of the Bar council pointed out that some advocates of the Punjab and Haryana high court were resorting to bench hunting to secure favourable orders

The privilege committee of the Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana (BCPH) has cleared names of two senior advocates of the high court in alleged episode of bench hunting attempts at HC to obtain a favourable order in an alleged case of corruption involving a Gurugram-based realtor and a former special CBI court judge in Haryana.

Bench hunting or forum shopping refers to petitioners managing to get their cases heard by a particular judge or bench to ensure a favourable order. (Shutterstock)

In its proceedings on August 21, after considering replies from them, the committee cleared names of senior advocates Puneet Bali and Rakesh Nehra, who were among 16 lawyers served notices on August 7. The names of their associates — Sauhard Singh, Rupender Singh, Bindu Tanwar, Ankit Yadav, Anmol Chandan, Gagandeep Singh and Aakash Sharma — have also been cleared.

“Upon perusal of the records and replies submitted, the committee is of the considered view that further assistance (from the two senior advocates) is not required. No material has surfaced against them. On the contrary, both have extended full cooperation throughout, reflecting their commitment to transparency, integrity and the highest standards of professional ethics,” the committee recorded in its order of August 21, adding that the reputation and integrity of both the advocates and their associates remain “untarnished”, and no further information is required from their offices.

The committee, chaired by Raj Kumar Chauhan, was constituted on August 4 by BCPH chairman Rakesh Gupta after members of the Bar council pointed out that some advocates of the Punjab and Haryana high court were resorting to bench hunting to secure “favourable orders” from a particular bench or avoiding to appear before another.

Bench hunting or forum shopping refers to petitioners managing to get their cases heard by a particular judge or bench to ensure a favourable order. The council is the statutory body with 1.5 lakh members across two states and Chandigarh and adjudicates complaints against lawyers.

Notice to two Delhi advocates

The committee also issued notices to two Delhi lawyers seeking their personal appearance along with written responses. They were issued notice after it came to light that several advocates appearing for the developer were engaged by Gulshan (Sachdeva) and Siddharth Bhardwaj, both practising in Delhi and appearing in matters concerning the developer before the Punjab and Haryana high court. “It is significant that the information relating to restriction of listing of certain advocates’ cases before particular Benches is not in the public domain. Many of the advocates whose names appeared in such orders were themselves unaware of this fact. However, Gulshan and Bhardwaj were found to be surprisingly well aware of such restrictions,” the committee recorded while seeking their responses.

It also issued notice to one more lawyer, Kunal Dawar, seeking his response as he was also found associated in a case filed by the developer.

These proceedings emanate from a petition filed by real estate firm M3M’s director Roop Bansal in high court seeking quashing of an FIR filed by the Haryana anti-corruption bureau in April 2023 against himself and others, including former special CBI court judge Sudhir Parmar.

The case stems from an April 2023 case, registered against Sudhir Parmar, Roop Bansal and others under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Parmar, who was then special CBI judge, Panchkula, was accused of alleged favouritism towards Bansal and others who were accused in FIRs being investigated by the CBI and the Enforcement Directorate. Bansal’s case was withdrawn from a judge by chief justice Sheel Nagu in May and assigned it to himself after some “complaints”. While hearing the petition, the chief justice had orally hinted at possible cases of “bench hunting” in these proceedings during an open court hearing. However, subsequently, the chief justice also recused from hearing the case. The case is now being heard by the bench of justice Manjari Nehru Kaul.

The committee had also sought responses from Supreme Court advocates, senior advocate and Congress leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi and former attorney general Mukul Rohatgi, recording that their responses are necessary to “fairly and comprehensively adjudicate the matter in hand”. However, the latest order does not mention anything in relation to them.