Jammu and Kashmir High Court grants recognition to Kashmir Advocates Association

The High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh on Friday granted recognition to the Kashmir Advocates' Association (KAA), while exercising the powers vested with it under Section 58 of the Advocates Act, 1961 .The decision was taken after the Full Court on June 8 made a recommendation to recognise the KAA under the Advocates' Welfare Fund Act, 2001."I am to inform you that pursuant to the recommendation of the Hon'ble Full Court vide Its Resolution dated 08-06-2024, Hon'ble High Court of J&K and Ladakh vested with powers of State Bar Council under Section 58 of the Advocates Act, 1961 has granted recognition to "Kashmir Advocates' Association" under sub-section (1) of Section 16 of the Advocates' Welfare Fund Act, 2001," the High Court Registrar General, Shahzad Azeem said in a communication to the KAA. .Advocate Waseem Gul is the President of KAA, while Advocate Mubashir Majid Malik is its Vice President. Jeetender Singh is the KAA's General Secretary and Adil Muneer Andrabi is its Joint Secretary. While speaking to Bar and Bench, Gul said that the sole motive of the association is to work for the welfare of advocates."It's the beginning of a new era with the recognition of KAA and more particularly very crucial for the welfare of the legal fraternity. We will leave no stone unturned to ensure that we serve the legal fraternity," he said..Pertinently, the decision to recognise the KAA has been taken at a time when the Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association (JKHCBA) - which has been representing the lawyers at Srinagar Bench for many years - is facing action from the administration in Srinagar for its alleged secessionist ideology.The District Magistrate, Srinagar on June 25 imposed restrictions under Section 144 of the Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC) in the district court premises at Srinagar to halt elections for office bearers of the JKHCBA. The action had been taken based on a communication received from the KAA itself which had raised concerns about the legality and authenticity of the JKHCBA. In the communication to the District Magistrate, the KAA had claimed that the HCBA is an unregistered association, and called for a ban on conducting the HCBA elections.Following the KAA's communication, the District Magistrate had directed an inquiry by the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Srinagar who submitted a report stating that while the HCBA has advocated for a "peaceful settlement of the Kashmir issue", it also advanced a secessionist ideology.The SSP had also raised concerns that a law and order issue may arise if the HCBA elections were allowed to be conducted. In view of this report, the District Magistrate issued directions to halt the conduct of the HCBA elections. A similar action had been taken against the JKHCBA in 2023 as well.