Poonch lawyers go on indefinite strike after police allegedly intimidate Additional Sessions Judge

Poonch: Court proceedings across Jammu and Kashmir’s border district of Poonch came to a complete halt on Tuesday after lawyers launched an indefinite work boycott to protest the alleged intimidation of an Additional Sessions Judge by police personnel during a highway transit check.

The strike, which suspended work across the District Court complex in Poonch as well as sub-divisional courts in Surankote and Mendhar, was triggered by an incident on Monday evening along the Bhimber Gali, Surankote highway corridor.

Members of the Bar said that Judicial Officer Mir Wajahat was returning from Jammu to his station of posting after exhausting his leave when his car was intercepted near Potha Bypass, located between Surankote and Bhimber Gali (BG).

They said that the vehicle was halted twice along the stretch. At Potha, on-duty police personnel, including recently deployed Probationary Sub-Inspectors (PSIs), allegedly intercepted the car, questioned the officer aggressively, and used “unparliamentary” language.

“Despite the officer disclosing his judicial identity, and with the official flag rod mounted on the vehicle, a confrontation ensued when an on-duty policeman allegedly reached inside the cabin and attempted to pull the ignition key out. Because the car was an automatic model with an integrated transmission safety lock, the key could not be dislodged,” they said.

Rather than engaging in a roadside altercation, the Judge, as per the bar representatives, stepped down from the vehicle, reportedly telling the personnel that if they intended to forcibly take the key, they were welcome to keep the vehicle. The officer then contacted the Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) of Poonch, who rushed to the location.

Eyewitnesses and Bar members said the Judge waited on the roadside gravel for more than an hour until the CJM arrived, after which he left his personal car at the spot and departed in the magistrate’s official vehicle.

The escalation prompted swift damage control after the Station House Officer (SHO) of the jurisdictional police station reached the spot within ten minutes of the incident to defuse tensions, explaining that newly inducted personnel had failed to recognise the officer. Later, senior police officers also approached the Principal District and Sessions Judge (PDJ) Poonch as well as the officer concerned to express regret and resolve the matter amicably.

The episode provoked intense outrage across the district’s legal fraternity. On Tuesday morning, the Bar Association Surankote convened an emergency general body meeting and unanimously adopted a formal resolution forwarding copies to the High Court of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh as well as senior administrative authorities. The resolution termed the police conduct “wholly inconsistent with the dignity of public office, professional responsibility, and the rule of law.”

“The Bar Association, Surankote, unanimously condemns the alleged misconduct and unbecoming conduct of the police personnel involved in the incident at Bypass, Potha, Surankote,” the resolution read. “The Association strongly recommends that the police personnel concerned be placed under immediate suspension, in accordance with law and applicable service rules, pending a fair, impartial, independent, and time-bound inquiry into the incident.”

The Bar also demanded that individual responsibility be fixed on every officer involved, seeking departmental proceedings and potential termination if allegations of overreach are established.

Reiterating the decision of the legal fraternity, President of the District Bar Association Poonch, Sunil Sharma, confirmed that court work across all the courts in the district remained grounded.

“We have completely shut down work across Poonch, Surankote, and Mendhar courts. When an Additional Sessions Judge is stopped on a highway, an attempt is made to snatch his vehicle key, and he is subjected to uncivil language, it strikes at the institutional dignity of the entire judiciary. A verbal apology behind closed doors will not suffice. The administration must place the errant personnel under immediate suspension and institute a formal inquiry,” Sharma said, adding that the boycott would continue until concrete action is taken.

Throughout Tuesday, court corridors across Poonch district wore a deserted look, with routine litigation, bail hearings, and scheduled trials deferred indefinitely.

We reached out to the Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Poonch, who was unavailable for comment as he was attending a meeting. This story will be updated with the official police version as and when received.