Lucknow, May 18 (IANS) A day after nearly 240 allegedly illegal lawyers’ chambers and shops were demolished outside the district court premises in Lucknow following orders from the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court, tensions escalated further on Monday as members of the Bar Association accused the administration of carrying out a brutal lathi-charge on protesting advocates.

The demolition drive, conducted by the Lucknow Municipal Corporation with heavy police deployment on Sunday, had triggered strong protests from lawyers, leading to clashes and heated exchanges with security personnel.

On Monday, Bar Association General Secretary Jitendra Yadav alleged that several advocates were injured during the police action and condemned the administration for not allowing lawyers enough time to remove their belongings from the chambers before demolition.

“The High Court had issued an order, and we respect the judiciary. For the last two to two-and-a-half months, we have been awaiting its implementation. However, we strongly condemn the lathi-charge by the administration against our respected members,” Yadav told IANS.

He claimed that lawyers were prevented from retrieving important items from their chambers.

“We are protesting because the administration did not even give our respected advocates a chance to remove the laptops, air-conditioners, furniture, and many important files kept inside their chambers,” he said.

According to Yadav, the police resorted to force during the process, leaving several lawyers injured.

“The police carried out such a severe lathi-charge that several of our advocates were injured, some suffered fractures, and they are currently admitted to the hospital,” he alleged.

He further said that the advocates were not opposing the High Court’s directions but objecting to the manner in which the demolition was executed.

“There was no order for a lathi-charge. The court had only ordered a demolition. It is not that we do not respect the court; the entire country respects the judiciary, and we also do. However, we strongly condemn the administration’s lathi-charge against our respected members. I condemn this incident,” he added.

–IANS

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