Senior Aam Aadmi Party leader and Leader of the Opposition in the Punjab Assembly H.S. Phoolka decided to step down from his position on Sunday after the Bar Council of Delhi disallowed his resuming his private practice, holding that he held an “office of profit.”
“I have conveyed my decision to the party supremo Arvind Kejriwal... I want to represent and appear for my clients, victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots. As my position as the Leader of the Opposition is being considered an office of profit, I’m giving it up,” Mr. Phoolka told The Hindu .
Suggests three names
“It’s for the party high command to choose a new leader for the AAP legislature party. I have suggested three names, Kanwar Sandhu, Sukhpal Khaira and Aman Arora,” he said.
The Bar Council of Delhi had last week barred Advocate Phoolka from resuming practice, arguing that he held the rank of a Cabinet Minister with salary and perks.
Suspended practice
Mr. Phoolka had suspended his practice on March 30, 2017, after becoming the Leader of the Opposition.
Recently, however, he had asked the BCD to permit him to fight the cases of 1984 anti-Sikh riot victims.
Meanwhile, Haryana-based advocate Hemant Kumar has written to the Bar Council of India under the Right to Information Act, asking if the Advocate-General appointed in Punjab and Haryana, who enjoyed Cabinet rank with pay and perks, was entitled to practice.
