Punjab Additional AG Mukesh Berry quits amid row

Saurabh Malik

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 10

In a major embarrassment to the Punjab Government, Additional Advocate General Mukesh Berry on Wednesday resigned from the post just two days after his appointment, asking it not to ridicule and diminish the stature of senior advocates. The resignation comes after the government’s decision to accept senior advocate APS Deol’s resignation from the Advocate General’s post just over a month after his appointment.

In a letter addressed to Punjab Principal Secretary, Department of Home Affairs, Anurag Verma, Berry asserted he was tendering his resignation without commenting upon the government’s decision to accept Deol’s resignation. Making it clear that he was unwilling to continue a moment longer, Berry made it clear that the resignation would be deemed to be accepted from the date of its submission, which was today itself.

“Having remained an elected representative of the advocates as a member of the Bar Council of Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh for 27 years and also the chairman of the same and in continuous service as law officer in the office of Advocate General, Punjab, for 28 years, I would request the government not to ridicule and diminish the status and dignity of the senior advocates of this High Court,” Berry added.

Berry along with Deputy Chief Minister Sukhjinder Randhawa’s son-in-law Tarun Vir Singh Lehal was appointed Additional Advocate General by the Channi government on November 8. Lehal’s appointment virtually led to an uproar, with the Opposition alleging nepotism.

The Advocate General’s office has even otherwise been courting controversy ever since the Congress replaced Capt Amarinder Singh with Charanjit Singh Channi as Chief Minister.

The government took about eight days to appoint the new Advocate General after Atul Nanda stepped down from the post. It initially finalised three names in quick succession for the post, leading to confusion and a general perception of indecisiveness.

The information available suggests the post of Advocate General was initially promised to senior advocate DS Patwalia. In a last-minute turnaround, the government reportedly cleared the name of senior advocate Anmol Rattan Singh Sidhu.

But the government eventually appointed Deol, who was at one point the counsel for former top cop Sumedh Singh Saini and IG Paramraj Singh Umranangal, both accused in the Behbal Kalan police firing case. The appointment came as a surprise as the incidents of sacrilege and the subsequent police firing in Faridkot district’s Kotkapura and Behbal Kalan in 2015, have been considered politically sensitive.

Was appointed two days ago

Mukesh Berry along with Dy CM Sukhjinder Randhawa’s son-in-law Tarun Vir Singh Lehal was appointed Addl AG by the Channi government on November 8