Ensure Kathua girl’s family has access to justice: SC

new delhi — The Supreme Court on Friday took suo motu notice of an incident of lawyers of Jammu and Kathua bar associations preventing a woman lawyer from appearing for the family of a rape victim.

A bench of Chief Justice Dipak Misra, Justice A.M. Khanwilkar and Justice D.Y. Chandrachud directed the members of both the associations to ensure that access of justice was not denied to the victim’s family and that no obstruction is caused to them.

The court also issued notice to the Bar Council of India, Jammu & Kashmir Bar Council, Jammu Bar Association and Kathua District Bar Association seeking response as it was brought to its notice that lawyers did not allow the the filing of the chargesheet.

Earlier in the day, the top court had asked a lawyer to bring materials on record to take judicial note of a strike call given by Kathua and Jammu and Kashmir bar associations in relation to the gangrape and killing of the eightyear-old girl in Jammu region.

Advocate Shoeb Alam, appearing for Jammu and Kashmir, said that the police has filed the charge sheet before the magistrate on Thursday.

Alam, who was called to the CJI court, opposed the CBI probe as demanded by some apex court lawyers and said that thorough investigations were being carried out by the state crime branch and said that lawyers were obstructing the process.

“Police team was heckled by the lawyers and prevented from submitting the charge sheet before the CJM court in Kathua,” Alam said.