DINESH S/O SRI AKHILESHWAR PRASAD SINGH, RESIDENT OF OLD LAL KOTHI, ALKAPURI MORE, P.S. Vs. THE UNION OF INDIA THROUGH CABINET SECRETARY, CENTRAL SECRETARIAT, NEW DELHI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard learned counsel for the parties.

(2.) The petitioner has invoked the Public Interest Litigation jurisdiction of this Court for issuance of writ of mandamus commanding the respondents to put in place an institutional mechanism to select Law Officers and Panel Advocates of the State and Public Prosecutors, Additional/Assistant Public Prosecutors strictly on merit through an impartial/transparent process.

(3.) The petitioner asserts that Law Officers including Panel Advocates and Public Prosecutors constitute an essential cog in the wheel of the justice delivery system of India and such Advocates provide assistance to the Courts and Tribunals on behalf of the State. The State being a litigant in large number of cases of various and varied nature, its lawyers or Law Officers also have to be men of competence with sound knowledge of certain branches of law. It is pointed out that though Bihar Litigation Policy, 2011 has been published on 31st of March, 2011 but large numbers of Law Officers have been appointed without following a transparent merit based impartial procedure.