Bar drops advocate for criminal activities

The Enrollment Committee of the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu on pursuing a petition against SR Balasubramanian found that besides several criminal cases pending against him, he was detained under the Goondas Act. Moreover, he had not declared the criminal cases pending against him in the enrollment application. 

The committee on holding that Balasubramanian has not provided a proper explanation as to why he failed to disclose the fact of him being a history-sheeter and that he has not taken any steps to revoke them as per procedures provided to him by the law, ordered his removal from the rolls of the Bar with immediate effect.

Though there is no provision under the Advocates Act for such removal, the enrollment committee comprising Chairman AR Venkatesan and members KKS Jayaraman and V Karthikeyan, ordered Balasubramanian’s removal citing judgements of Justices N Kirbukaran and KK Sasidaran that under Section 16 of the General Clauses Act, the Bar Council has power to suspend or dismiss in case of violation of misconduct, since the bar council has the power to enroll them.