Bombay High Court Slams FDA Over 'Untrue' Clean Chit to Mantralaya Canteen

The Bombay High Court at Kolhapur issued notice to the Maharashtra government and the Bar Council of Maharashtra and Goa (BCMG) on a petition seeking a structured scheme of financial assistance and stipends for junior lawyers in the State. [Saklen Mansur Mujawar & Ors v. Chairman, Advocates Welfare Fund Trustee Committee & Ors]A Bench of Justices Milind N Jadhav and Nandesh S Deshpande passed the order on August 3 in the petition filed by 21 young advocates practising before the Court. The petition seeks effective implementation and augmentation of the Maharashtra Advocates Welfare Fund Act, 1981 and payment of stipends to junior lawyers.The Court noted that while the 1981 Act vests statutory powers to administer a welfare fund and extend financial assistance, the mechanism appears to have fallen short.“The issue is undoubtedly in the domain of the State and the Bar Council of the concerned State, but requires to be done in present times, primarily for the reason that it is the bounden duty of all stakeholders to ensure that the young advocates at the Bar who join this profession find their feet and, rather entrench their feet in the first two or three years of their practice, so that they do not wither away from the profession due to any reason, and more specifically on account of financial aspects/constraints which go to the root of the matter."The petitioners relied on a October 15, 2024 circular issued by Bar Council of India recommending a minimum monthly stipen