Maharashtra undertrial slaps lawyer in court; lawyers go on strike

Thane, January 7

An undertrial prisoner allegedly slapped an advocate at a court in Maharashtra’s Thane district, a police official said on Tuesday.

The incident took place at Chopda court in Ulhasnagar town on Monday following which lawyers went on a day-long strike in protest, he said.

The accused, Rahul Tak, was brought to the court for a case hearing, inspector RK Kote said.

While standing in a corner, Tak called advocate Rajendra Bhalerao, who had defended him in earlier cases, towards him to say something, the official said.

As the advocate went to the accused, the latter allegedly used abusive language and slapped him, Kote said.

When a woman lawyer tried to rescue her colleague, the accused threatened both with dire consequences, the official said.

The police later caught hold of Tak and took him away, he said, without giving details of the charges against the accused and the prison where he was lodged.

The local bar association took a serious note of the incident and submitted a written complaint to the court.

The lawyers condemned the incident and later went on a day-long strike. PTI