Ex MP & lawyer Satya Pal Jain & SC lawyer Gobind Goel frontrunners for AG’s post in Haryana

CHANDIGARH: One of the first priorities of Haryana’s new BJP government that will be sworn in on Sunday would be to look for a competent Advocate General, who would represent the state before the higher judiciary. The AG’s post has acquired siginificance because he present the BJP government’s arguments in crucial cases related to land deals of Robert Vadra and DLF.

The new government will have to take a fresh decision on alleged arbitrary land acquisition cases too. It would want to have a designated senior lawyer for the coveted post. While several senior lawyers are eyeing the berth, two have emerged frontrunners. Senior lawyer and former MP Satya Pal Jain is one of the frontrunners.

Having represented BJP before several judicial forums and courts in several states, Jain is chairman of the National Committee for Legal Affairs & Election Commission Issues as well as the National Legal Working Group of BJP and a member of BJP national executive committee. He is perceived close to FM Arun Jaitley and BJP president Amit Shah.

Gobind Goel, senior lawyer who practices in the Supreme Court, is another lawyer in the fray. Brother of a sitting Supreme Court Judge. The AG office in the previous regimes too was under scrutiny. Often kin of judicial officers, bureaucrats and politicians make it to the office which houses an battery of over 100 law officers. No written tests, interviews are held to finalise the appointments which yield handsome salaries, apart from the high profile and clout.