Vijayawada: In line with a resolution passed by AP State Bar Federation, Bar Associations across the State Andhra Pradesh boycotted court proceedings and staged protests on Friday, demanding immediate release of Rs 10,000 Nyaya Mitra stipend for junior advocates and the prompt implementation of Andhra Pradesh Advocates Protection Act.

As part of the protest, Bezwada Bar Association organised a rally at 12 noon from Bar Association premises to the Collector’s Office, where advocates submitted a memorandum to government officials urging immediate action on their demands.

Addressing the gathering, Bezwada Bar Association president AK Basha said that for the first time, advocates across the State had united on a single day to boycott court duties, marking the beginning of a new chapter in the advocates’ movement.

He demanded that the State government, under the leadership of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, immediately fulfil its election promise of providing Rs 10,000 stipend to junior advocates. Recalling that the previous government had introduced Rs 5,000 monthly stipend but later discontinued it, he urged the government to release the newly announced Rs 10,000 stipend along with pending arrears from the previous regime without further delay.

Basha also recalled that Minister Nara Lokesh, during his Padayatra, had promised to implement an Advocates Protection Act to safeguard lawyers from illegal attacks, and demanded that this assurance be fulfilled immediately.

AP Bar Council Member Chalasani Ajay Kumar, senior advocate and BJP Legal Cell president Uppalapati Srinivasa Raju, former secretary Raja, and several senior and junior advocates participated in the rally and submitted the memorandum at the Collector’s Office.

Speaking on the occasion, Ajay Kumar stated that the Nyaya Mitra stipend and the Advocates Protection Act were clearly mentioned in the manifesto and must be implemented immediately to prove that these assurances were meant for the welfare and protection of advocates, and not merely for electoral gains. He warned that the advocates’ movement would intensify if the demands were not met.