Delhi-LG row case: Rajeev Dhavan quits practice to protest denial of time by CJI

NEW DELHI: Senior advocate Rajeev Dhavan has decided to quit advocacy after he was denied the opportunity to wrap up arguments in the Delhi government-LG row over powers, according to people close to Dhavan.

He had sought 15 minutes from the court towards the end of the hearing. When he stood up to speak, an impatient Chief Justice Dipak Misra told him there was no need to elaborate on a particular legal point as no one had argued on that point, tried to cut short his arguments and asked him to submit written arguments.

This led to a showdown between the senior advocate and the CJI, with the former saying the CJI could pass any judgement he liked without hearing arguments and Justice Misra ticking off Dhavan for raising his voice in court.


Dhavan suggested that he would not face any personal loss even if the case went against his client, a fact that did not go down well with his fellow lawyers appearing for the Kejriwal government, senior advocates Indira Jaising and Gopal Subramanium. After giving up advocacy, he said that he would like to keep his senior gown for “memories” and for “services” rendered to the bar.