STATE OF BIHAR Vs. CHANDRESHWAR PRASAD PLEADER

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This is a reference made under Section 14 of the Legal Practitioners Act by the District Judge of Muzaffarpur. It relates to the conduct of one Mr. Chandreshwar Prasad, who is enrolled as a Pleader in that District Court since the 21st of March, 1950, and has been practising there as such since then. The main allegation against him as found in the order under reference which is dated 26-9-1957, is:

(2.) Now, the admitted position is as will appear from the facts on the record that the alleged misconduct was committed, if at all, in the Court of Mr. Kamleshwar Prasad Verma, the then presiding officer of the 2nd court of Munsif at Muzaffarpur, and not in the Court of the District Judge; but the officer who on the basis of that alleged misconduct had finally drawn the proceeding giving rise to the present reference was the District judge. Further, it is not denied that though it was the District Judge who had drawn the proceeding, but the actual enquiry therein, as ordered by the District Judge himself was made by the Registrar of Civil Court Gaya, with the result that at the end of the enquiry what constituted the basis for the conclusions drawn by the District Judge in his order under reference was the materials, collected and the report submitted by the Registrar, and not any evidence deposed to directly before the District Judge.

(3.) Accordingly, on the basis of these two admitted facts, Mr. Baldeva Sahay appearing for the Pleader, in answer to the show-cause notice issued by this Court on 19-11-1957, has, to begin with, challenged the very maintainability of the reference as made here apart from any question of merit in it.