New Delhi: Senior Advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan has withdrawn from seven cases pertaining to the ongoing youth protests in Delhi, which were pending before the Supreme Court on Thursday (October 15). The advocate cited repeated interruptions, the alleged snatching of his microphone and the bench’s failure to maintain order as the reason behind the move.Speaking to Bar and Bench about his decision, Sankaranarayanan said, “The bench failed to control the court. I cannot continue like this. Dignity of the court is more important.” He has reportedly informed his clients that he would no longer be acting as their counsel.The decision followed a hearing before a bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi, that was hearing 46 petitions over alleged police brutality, unlawful detentions, restrictions on public movement, journalists’ rights and the denotification of Jantar Mantar as a designated protest site.Repeated interruptions during submissionsAccording to a report by Bar and Bench, Sankaranarayanan faced repeated interruptions by other counsel while attempting to present his case before the bench. The interruptions reportedly prevented him from completing his submissions.Per sources cited in the report, a senior woman lawyer appearing on the same side as Sankaranarayanan allegedly snatched the microphone from him as he was making his submissions. He walked out of the court before the proceedings concluded.Sankaranarayanan emphasised the importance of maintaining the dignity and decorum of the court and informed reporters that he could not continued under the current circumstances.SC issues notices to Delhi Police, centreThe apex court, on Thursday, issued notices to the central government as well as the Delhi Police in several petitions. The bench also directed the police to preserve CCTV footage and other digital evidence concerning the cases.The court also appointed nodal counsel for both contesting sides and ordered them to “segregate the overlapping petitions into broad categories” by October 28, as per the report.A major portion of protest-related petitions have been listed for hearing on Novemeber 3.