Chapter 9
At the Lahore High Court continues...

I returned the brief a number of times. In the meantime they consulted other lawyers. For about a fortnight, they kept on coming to my office but I would not accept their brief. Eventually, after a fortnight, they turned up and said, “What does it matter to you whether we win or loose? You must put in the second appeal.” But this time, I was fed up with them and in sheer desperation I agreed to take up their brief. with full knowledge that as soon as it came up for hearing, it would be dismissed. The preliminary hearing was fixed before two judges. The case was number three on the list. It so happened that when the first case was called, the judges differed. One Judge declared he would admit the appeal, the other insisted that it should be dismissed. They did not consult each other before airing their views with the result that both became somewhat annoyed with each other. When the next case was called, without reference to his brother judge, one of the judges immediately said, “It is admitted.” When my case was called the other judge asked whether the facts disclosed in the grounds of the appeal were borne out by the record. I answered him in the affirmative. The Court now ordered that the record be sent for. With the record, the case came up for hearing before Mr. Justice Martinue before whom I had practised when he was District Judge at Gurdaspur. He enquired whether the record bore out the facts mentioned in the memorandum of appeal. Naturally I said, “Yes, My Lord”. The appeal was admitted and notice issued to the other side. My clients felt very happy. I was afraid that they would soon be disillusioned and suffer as they would have to bear the costs of the other side when the appeal was eventually dismissed.

The other side had engaged two lawyers- an Englishman and a Parsi. When the appeal was called for hearing, both were absent. I was asked to argue the case.

to be continued...