Hi. I'm from the US. I wanted to start an NGO here to serve disabled children. I hired a local lawyer to help me with the various processes here. Along the way, I found that the local lawyer was a) sabotaging the start and running of our NGO, b) asking for money claiming various government officials had to be bribed and c) siphoning funds. I have detailed records on email and photocopies of everything. I also have phone call recordings, as my smart phone records all calls anyway. The lawyer has also been very abusive and making threats, whenever I have tried to question him, often offering the first lie he can think of. What criminal proceedings are available against him? Abetment for asking for bribe for some government official? Also for his non-criminal misdeeds, how about a bar council complaint? Is it taken seriously by the bar council? Or is it just a joke? Do they impose serious penalties and sanctions? How long does it take? I am in Coimbatore and he practises mainly in Chennai. My evidence is overwhelming and documentation extensive. Since it impacts disabled children, if this were the US, they are a protected class and additional avenues are available to initiate action. Is that possible in India too? Are there any attorneys specializing in malpractice here?
