Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)

The Advocates Association Bangalore called for a strike to defend “prominent Judges of Karnataka”.

Four Lok Sabha Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MPs and others have collected signatures to impeach Karnataka high court judge Justice KL Manjunath, two months after the central government rejected the Supreme Court collegium’s recommendation to transfer him to Punjab and Haryana, reported the Indian Express.

The MPs would like the president to initiate Manjunath’s removal under Article 217 and 214(4) of the Constitution for “proved misbehaviour”, alleging “wealth disproportionate to his known sources of income”, “abused his position to amass several movable and immovable properties worth crores of rupees, disproportionate to his known sources of income”, hearing and deciding a petition in favour of a housing society where his daughter owned a plot, and “failing to declare his assets in violation of the Full Court Resolution of 1997”, according to the paper, which has seen the petition. The petition includes property registration deeds and other documents as annexes.

Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal who taken into custody after he, on principle, refused to pay Rs 10,000 bail in Nitin Gadkari’s defamation case against him, was released today after he furnished the bail bond, reported IANS.

Kejriwal paid bail after he was told by the court not to make it a “prestige issue”. AAP party leader and advocate Prashant Bhushan had vowed to approach a higher court if Kejriwal was not released on Friday.

"Everything can't be an exception for this man," the bench remarked, according to the report.

Responding to the incarceration of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal, who refused to pay Rs 10,000 bail in a criminal defamation case filed by BJP politician Nitin Gadkari before a magistrate, advocate and AAP leader Prashant Bhushan said that it was a travesty of law that “an honest man [Arvind Kejriwal] is in jail, while a corrupt person [Gadkari, allegedly] is outside.’’

“We do not agree with the order of the court. If Mr. Kejriwal is not released on Friday, the order will be challenged in a higher court... It is not necessary to have a bail bond for those who are ready to give an undertaking that they will remain present for court proceedings." The party has also threatened protests. [The Hindu]

Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal has been jailed in judicial lock-up after refusing to pay Rs 10,000 bail in a criminal defamation case over having called another politician a thief in January and including him in a list of "India's most corrupt".

Kejriwal said he would not pay the bail in the defamation case, filed by BJP leader Nitin Gadkari in Patiala House court in Delhi, out of principle because it was a political case. "I am ready to go to jail. We are setting precedence. I am not saying that give this treatment only to me. Give it to all," he told the magistrate. [NDTV]

AAP law minister calls for judicial reforms opposed: Somnath Bharti called for a meeting of Delhi’s district judges to encourage reforms but he was faced with opposition in the house and a letter to Delhi HC chief justice NV Ramana from Delhi principal law secretary AS Yadav, who said he saw it as an attack on the independence of the judiciary [PTI]

Madras HC advocates crowded the HC’s chief justice’s chambers yesterday, shouting slogans against the 12 names recommended for judgeships in the HC [TOI]

SC advocate HS Phololka joins AAP: Phololka, who is spearheading the 1984 riot victims’ case, is joining the political party Aam Aadmi Party whose leaders Arvind Kejriwal, Shanti Bhushan and Manish Sisodia contributed in the mission to get justice for the riot victims, at various times [TOI]