Even after the Supreme Court ordered courts to use two official languages in the courtroom for the recording of evidence and rendering of decisions, no Assamese court still uses Assamese as the official language of the court. Bengali and English are the two languages spoken in the Barak Valley, while Assamese and English are the languages of the court in the Brahmaputra Valley. The Vice President of The All Assam Lawyers Association has raised this issue at a press club on Tuesday.
All Assam Lawyers Association VP criticises the system
In a press conference held at the Tinsukia Press Club on Tuesday, Ashoke Kumar Karmakar, vice president of the All Assam Lawyers’ Association (AALA), strongly criticized the current system that only exists in Assam courts. He claimed that despite being required by Order 18 and Rule 5 of the Civil Procedure Court as well as Sections 132 and 392 of BNSS-23, no Assamese court follows this rule, depriving the litigants of the right to comprehend the court’s proceedings as they are recorded in a translated version of English, even though the litigants testify in Assamese.
Additionally, Advocate Karmakar described the resolutions passed at the All Assam Lawyers’ Association’s Pathsala convention, which took place from September 27 to September 29
Memorandum to be submitted to the CJ of SC
Advocate Karmakar said that the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of India will shortly receive a memorandum to this effect. He also recommended installing multiple screens in subordinate courts to oversee the court proceedings effectively.
Demand of AALA
To support an affordable legal system, the All Assam Lawyers Association called for the decentralization of the special courts. The Association applauded Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma’s decision to establish one Gauhati High Court bench in Upper Assam to maintain parity with the opening of the second secretariat in Dibrugarh.
The association also called for a stipend of Rs 10,000 per month for novice advocates for one to five years and Rs 25,000 per month for active attorneys who have reached the age of sixty. Karmakar also expressed gratitude to the government for allocating Rs 10 crore as a corpus fund to assist attorneys in need. They also attended the news conference. Advocate Udayananda Borgohain and Advocate Niroj Gogoi were also present at the conference.
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