NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Tuesday refused to entertain a PIL filed by a lawyer, seeking directions to amend the rules and the Advocate Act 1961 to exempt advocates from wearing traditional black coats and gowns during the scorching summer heat. The petitioner claimed that making lawyers wear black coats in summer was unsafe.”Ultimately it is a matter of decorum. You should be properly attired. You have to wear something. You cannot argue in ‘kurta pajama’ or shorts and T-shirt also,” remarked the three-judge bench of the top court, led by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, and Justices J.B. Pardiwala and Manoj Misra.The bench, however, permitted the petitioner, lawyer Shailendra Mani Tripathi, who filed the PIL in his personal capacity, to submit a representation to the Bar Council of India (BCI), state bar councils, and the Centre on the issue. They advised him to approach these bodies, which may decide on the matter.In his petition, Tripathi argued that the prescribed dress code for advocates is not suitable for the Indian climate. “Wearing a warm coat like a blanket in summer is no less than any torture. The climate of India is full of diversity. High temperature and humid weather prevail almost throughout the year in most parts of India. Wearing warm clothes in such weather affects work efficiency, which directly affects the quality of justice,” Tripathi stated in his petition.The petition also sought a direction to the state bar councils to determine the ‘months of prevailing summer’ for each state in order to exempt the wearing of black coats and gowns during those months.
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