The Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Monday reserved its judgment on a group of petitions calling for the establishment of transparent guidelines to govern the appointment of state lawyers.
The division bench, consisting of Justice Rajesh Singh Chauhan and Justice Rajeev Bharti, concluded the hearing after receiving arguments from both sides.
Government Asserts Selection Prerogative
Defending the current appointment system, Advocate General Ajay Mishra argued that the state government functions similarly to any client and maintains the fundamental right to choose its legal representation.
Mishra explained that the state utilizes a structured procedure guided by the Legal Remembrancer Manual. Under this system, a three-member high-powered committee, which is chaired by the Advocate General, is tasked with reviewing and recommending candidates from the bar for appointment as state counsel.
According to the Advocate General, this selection process has been applied consistently both before and since 2017 without any legal infractions.
State Open To Court Recommendations
In his submissions, Mishra referenced multiple Supreme Court rulings that affirm a state’s authority to select its own legal representatives and designate their roles. Based on these precedents, he argued that the public interest litigations lacked legal merit and should be dismissed.
However, while defending the existing framework, Mishra indicated that the state government remains open to evaluating alternative approaches should the High Court put forward improved recommendations.
