High drama was witnessed in Court No 3 on Monday, September 14 when Justices V Gopala Gowda and Adarsh Kumar Goel assembled to hear Supreme Court Women Lawyers Association vs Manohar Lal Sharma and Ors, which came up at 2.15 pm.

The petition was filed by Supreme Court Women Lawyers Association to seek action against ML Sharma and Ajai Pratap Singh, who had expressed their allegedly misogynist views in the BBC documentary, India’s Daughter, in connection with the December 2012 Nirbhaya incident.

The petition was seeking restrictions on the entry of the two advocates to the premises of the Supreme Court, and action against them by the Gender Sensitisation and Sexual Harassment Committee of the Supreme Court.

As the petitioner’s counsel sought issue of notice in the matter, ML Sharma got up to complain that he was being harassed by female advocates in the Supreme Court day in and day out.

When Justice Gowda took objection to the manner in which he chose to shout in the court room, disregarding decorum, Sharma profusely apologised, saying it was the continued harassment that he faced in the court’s premises, which made him to give vent to his feelings in the manner which he did.

Gowda advised him not to become emotional while making his submissions.

The case will now be listed before a regular bench on a non-miscellaneous day.

To refresh your memory of what Sharma and Singh said, click here.

And click here for an analysis of the limits of ethics in lawyers represent clients zealously.