Lawyers at Ahmedabad’s labour court have begun an indefinite strike against the new labour codes, raising concerns over the transfer of decision-making powers in labour and industrial disputes to administrative officials and warning of wider disruption across Gujarat’s labour courts.
The protest took place at the labour court located in Apna Bazaar, Ahmedabad, where advocates stayed away from court work and demonstrated against provisions of the new labour codes, according to Divya Bhaskar. Lawyers said a general meeting of the labour and industrial court bar had passed a resolution supporting the work boycott.
The advocates have demanded that questions arising from the implementation of the new labour codes be resolved. Their central objection is that powers previously exercised through labour and industrial courts are being given to administrative officials. The lawyers argued that officials without specialised legal knowledge may not be equipped to decide disputes affecting workers.
The advocates’ resolution also requested that courts should not pass one-sided orders during the period in which lawyers remain away from proceedings. The report did not specify how many cases or litigants were immediately affected by the boycott, or whether any court proceedings were formally adjourned as a result.
The Ahmedabad protest is linked to a wider call for an indefinite strike in labour and industrial courts across Gujarat. The lawyers’ position, as reported, is that the authority to decide labour disputes should be restored to the courts rather than being vested in administrative officers.
The dispute places the functioning of labour adjudication at the centre of the protest. Labour courts handle disputes involving workers and employers, and any prolonged interruption can affect parties waiting for hearings or orders. However, the supplied report does not provide details on the number of pending matters, the duration of the planned boycott, or the response of the state government, labour department or court administration.
The lawyers have framed the issue as one involving both the structure of labour justice and the protection of workers’ interests. They said the replacement of existing labour laws with new labour codes has created questions that require clarification before the new arrangement is implemented or operated.
The indefinite nature of the announced strike means that its effect will depend on participation by lawyers in courts across Gujarat and on any administrative or judicial response. The report confirms the Ahmedabad action and the decision to plan a statewide court boycott, but does not establish whether all labour and industrial courts in the state had stopped functioning.
The next formal developments are expected to concern the implementation of the lawyers’ resolution, the handling of cases during the boycott and any response to their demand that adjudicatory authority remain with labour and industrial courts.
