The Delhi High Court Bar Association on Wednesday urged its members to abstain from work on Thursday in protest against the Supreme Court collegium’s proposal to transfer Justice S Muralidhar to the Punjab and Haryana High Court. Muralidhar had been a judge at the Delhi High Court since 2006.

In a resolution, the bar association expressed “shock, outrage and dismay” at the proposal and called Muralidhar “one of the finest judges to have adorned the bench”.

“Such transfers are not only detrimental to our noble institution, but also tend to erode and dislodge the faith of the common litigant in the justice dispensation system,” the resolution said. “Such transfers also impede free and fair delivery of justice by the Hon’ble Bench.”

The bar association said it hoped the collegium would revisit its decision and recall the recommendation to transfer Muralidhar. It described the transfer as “a rarest of rare case” which has put “the majesty of our revered institution” at stake.

Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court collegium had recommended Muralidhar’s transfer. The Delhi High Court judge had been part of many notable judgements, including the one that decriminalised homosexuality in 2009 and the January 2010 order that the Chief Justice of India’s office came within the purview of the RTI.