Draft Advocates Protection Bill to go to Cabinet after AG’s remarks: Farooq

Andhra Pradesh Minister for Law and Justice N.Md. Farooq said the coalition government had begun steps for the introduction of the Andhra Pradesh Advocates’ Protection Bill, 2026, and that Law Secretary Pratibha Devi had been asked to prepare the draft at the earliest.

In a press release, the Minister said discussions would be held with the officials concerned soon, and the process of preparing the draft Bill would begin immediately thereafter. “Once the draft Bill gets ready, it will be sent to the Advocate General and the Finance Department for their remarks, and after that it will be placed before the Cabinet for approval,” Mr. Farooq said.

He said the government, under the leadership of Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu, was committed to the welfare and protection of advocates, recalling that financial assistance of ₹46.92 crore had already been released, at ₹4 lakh each to the families of 1,173 dead advocates across the State.

A long-pending demand

Lawyers in the State have been seeking such a law for over two decades. In July, members of the Indian Association of Lawyers protested outside the District Court in Visakhapatnam, alleging that successive governments had failed to keep promises made during election campaigns, and that the absence of the legislation had made it risky for advocates to take up cases involving political leaders and criminal elements. They said attacks on lawyers had created fear within the profession and discouraged them from representing vulnerable sections. A memorandum was submitted to the District Collector for onward transmission to the Chief Justice of India, the Chief Justice of the Andhra Pradesh High Court, and the Union and State Ministers for Law.

Telangana cleared its Bill in March

The Telangana Cabinet approved the Telangana Advocate Protection Bill on March 23, 2026, to curb attacks on lawyers and provide for their safety.