Supreme Court Bar Association President Dushyant Dave resigned from his post on Thursday, stating that he had “forfeited [the] right” to continue in the position, Live Law reported.
In his resignation letter, Dave noted that the tenure of the executive committee of the Supreme Court Bar Association had already come to an end, but it was not possible to hold elections for the new body “due to reservations” by some of the members.
“I understand their [members’] position and have no quarrel with it but to me any further continuation as the President in these circumstances will be morally wrong,” Dave wrote, according to Live Law.
Meanwhile, Senior Advocate Chander Uday Singh also resigned from his post of Member of the Executive (Senior) of the body, Bar and Bench reported.
Dave has been a vocal critic of quite a few decisions of the Supreme Court. Most recently, he said that the court’s decision to form a four-member committee to resolve the deadlock on agriculture laws raised “very serious question marks about the purpose and object underlying the decisions”, reported The Telegraph. He had also represented some farmer unions, when the Supreme Court heard a batch of petitions challenging the legality of the farm laws.
In November, he had written to the Supreme Court secretary general, seeking a reply on how a bail appeal filed by Republic TV Editor-in-Chief Arnab Goswami was listed urgently for hearing.
In February last year, there appeared to be a difference of opinion in the Supreme Court Bar Association over a comment made by the court judge Justice Arun Mishra, praising Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The association had released a statement, which it said was a “resolution” expressing “deep sense of anguish and concern” at Justice Mishra’s remarks. The statement called upon judges to not show any proximity to the executive in future. However later, the body’s General Secretary Ashok Arora – whose name was mentioned at the bottom of the statement, but was not signed by him – said that no resolution was passed and called Dave’s stand “arbitrary, dictatorial and irresponsible”.
In September, Dave wrote to Chief Justice of India SA Bobde expressing “strong disappointment and condemnation” for not not being allowed to speak at Justice Mishra’s farewell.
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