Photo Courtesy: India Today Group
Shillong: Meghalaya legal groups have cut all ties with Advocate General Amit Kumar. The High Court of Meghalaya Bar Association and the Shillong Bar Association stripped Kumar from their rolls following an extraordinary general meeting on August 5. Over 400 lawyers voted to reject him. They are now pressuring the state government to fire him from his post.
The firestorm started over comments Kumar made in court. He alleged that bar associations failed to protect women lawyers or provide a safe workspace. The legal groups viewed his broad accusation as an attack on their integrity. The associations demanded an explanation, but Kumar’s follow-up failed to quiet the tension. One lawyer group leader stated, "The associations took exception to what they viewed as broad allegations against the legal fraternity."
This conflict stems from a violent attack in Shillong where Hynniewtrep National Youth Front members dragged an advocate from his chamber and paraded him through the streets. The victim had previously faced molestation claims involving an intern. The High Court took up the case on its own motion. Chief Justice Revati Mohite Dere and Justice W Diengdoh reviewed the matter on July 31. They noted that police watched the assault happen but refused to intervene.
Authorities arrested four HNYF members on August 3. The court has since pulled the State Bar Council and the Bar Council of India into the case. They must now create a plan to protect women lawyers and interns across the state. The High Court will revisit the matter on August 19.
Updated at 15th August 2026 at 1:50am
The Supreme Court Bar Association has jumped into the fray, calling on the local Meghalaya groups to walk back their decision. In a recent statement, the national body slammed the local resolution as unwarranted, warning that attacking a government lawyer for arguments made in court only fans the flames of the controversy.
New details emerged regarding the intern who sparked the original investigation. She alleged a senior lawyer harassed her inside his chamber and tried to silence her with 500 rupees. The Supreme Court group emphasized that instead of attacking the Advocate General, local bars should focus on building confidential ways for women and interns to report abuse without fear. One local lawyer hit back at her peers, labeling the decision to expel the Advocate General as misdirected aggression aimed at shielding the powerful rather than protecting the vulnerable.
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