Chennai: The Tamilnadu Advocates’ Association (TNAA) on Monday urged the Central and the State governments to immediately declare legal fraternity as essential service personnel and include them in the list of priority groups for Covid-19 vaccination in the first phase/stage itself.
In a letter to the Supreme Court Chief Justice, Madras High Court Chief Justice, Union Health Minister, TN Governor, Chief Minister, Puducherry Lt Governor and CM, TN Health Minister and Union and State Health Secretaries, TNAA President S Prabakaran said, not including lawyers in the priority list of professionals eligible for inoculation for COVID-19 in the first phase of the vaccination drive was ‘unfair’ and ‘illegal’, to say the least.
Terming the leaving out lawyers from the priority list was due to the misplaced priorities of bureaucrats, he said the central and state governments should immediately contact the Bar Council of India and the Bar Council of TN and Puducherry for the list of practicising lawyers and work in coordination with them to conduct vaccination camps in the first phase.
“The governments should make available the necessary number of vials/ doses of the vaccination to the Bar Council at the Centre and the states so that all members of the legal fraternity could be reached out without fail,” Prabakaran said.
“The TNAA hereby puts the central and the state governments on notice that if lawyers and judicial officers are not declared as priority professional eligible for inoculation in the first phase, the TNAA will approach the competent judicial forums and obtain necessary judicial orders and directives,” he said.