Lawyers under scanner after litigant says he never authorised filing of appeal in Supreme Court

A drama of the most unusual kind unfolded before the Supreme Court earlier this week after a litigant in a case said he did not know any of the lawyers who claimed to represent him before the top court [Bhagwan Singh vs State of Uttar Pradesh and Anr]..More than a month after the Court had issued notice to the State of Uttar Pradesh and one other respondent on an appeal filed in the name of Bhagwan Singh, he last month wrote a letter to the Supreme Court Registry that he had not filed any such case.The appeal before the apex court was filed against a 2019 Allahabad High Court order that quashed criminal proceedings against an accused in a case of rape and kidnapping of a minor.Singh appeared in-person before a bench of Justices Bela M Trivedi and Satish Chandra Sharma on July 30 along with his real counsel Nikhil Majithia and Rishi Kumar Singh Gautam.The appeal in his name had been filed through advocate-on-record A who had signed the Vakalatnama identifying and attesting Singh as the petitioner. However, A himself was absent before the Court on July 30 when the case was taken up.Instead, advocate R appeared on his behalf. This led to an adjournment with a direction to advocate A to remain present before the Court..The case was then taken up again on July 31 when the actual story behind the filing of appeal unfolded before the top court. Advocate A revealed his full name and said that he had incorrectly identified and verified the signature of the petitioner. Instead, the Court was told, A had received the Vakalatnama of Singh with a signature from advocate R.In another twist, R said that he had received Singh's Vakalatnama with a signature from another lawyer advocate K, who practices before the Allahabad High Court. .AoRs certifying vakalatnama execution not an empty formality: Supreme Court .A visibly miffed bench tore into the lawyers as they failed to answer the questions posed by it."This is not the way to appear and file before the Supreme Court. What kind of culture you all have created? No discipline, 10 names will be in vakalat and Advocate-On-Record does not appear. This is not the way," Justice Trivedi said. The advocates attempting to argue for the lawyers facing scrutiny, also faced the ire of the bench. "The petitioner - Bhagwan Singh is also present in the Court and he states that he does not know either Mr. A or Mr. R or K, and that he came to know about the present proceedings having been filed in his name only when the concerned Police Station of his area came to serve notice of this Court on him in respect of the present SLP proceedings," the Court recorded in the order dated May 31..Before proceeding further in the matter, the Court has now sought the presence of advocate K who is alleged to have been the source of the Vakalatnama at the centre of controversy. "The Registry is directed to issue notice to the advocate Mr. K at the address furnished by learned Advocate Mr. R to remain present in the Court on 9-8-2024 at 2.00 pm " the Court ordered.It further asked Bhagwan Singh to file an affidavit with regard to the correct facts in respect of the present proceedings. The case will be taken up next on August 9.Note: The names of the lawyers involved have been withheld for the time being..[Read orders]