In 2019, 13 bus drivers sued SBS Transit over overtime pay and working hours. They claimed that they were made to work without a rest day each week and that they were also underpaid for overtime work.
All 13 bus drivers are represented by Mr M Ravi from (then) Carson Law Chambers.
Yesterday (22 Nov), a four-day hearing into the lawsuit began, but people weren’t focusing on the facts of the case, but Mr Ravi’s conduct.
Other than calling SBS’ lawyer, Senior Counsel Davinder Singh, a clown, he even claimed that the judge is bias, and said that he and his client (the SBS drivers) would be discharging themselves from the case.
“My client said he doesn’t have faith in the system,” Mr Ravi said, adding that there was a breach of the right to a fair trial.
“I’m not participating in these proceedings. You can pass whatever judgment you want. I’m retiring soon,” he said earlier.
Yes, this means the trial didn’t even officially start before these claims were made.
In addition, Mr Ravi also said he would be asking “Dr Mahathir” for help. He noted that 80% of the drivers are Malaysian and said he would be filing a case to the International Court of Justice.
The case was adjourned to next Monday, where Justice Lim will hear Mr Ravi’s formal application to discharge himself.
Well, it appears that he’s not going to discharge himself.
SBS Drivers ‘Embarrassed’ to Let M Ravi Represent Them & Are Now Seeking a Refund
His client, the 13 drivers, has since spoken.
The lead plaintiff in the case (i.e. the leader of the group suing SBS) said that they were “very embarrassed” at how Mr Ravi had treated the judge and SBS’s lawyer.
The plaintiff, Mr Chua Qwong Meng, said in a statement, “We do not condone Mr Ravi’s behaviour at all and what he displayed yesterday was a total shock to us, who had put our trust in him. He has let us down very badly and hurt our case immeasurably.”
He said that there was “absolutely no excuse or justification” for Mr Ravi to call the SBS lawyer a “clown”.
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With regards to Mr Ravi’s claim that his client “doesn’t have faith in the system,” Mr Chua said that was untrue.
He said in the statement, “There is no truth whatsoever to Mr Ravi’s allegation, which he made yesterday, that we have no faith in the Singapore judicial system and that we do not intend to proceed with the case.”
They’re therefore going forward with the lawsuit and are looking for a new lawyer.
As of now, they claimed to have paid $55,000 to Mr Ravi for his legal services (there are a lot of work to be done before a hearing), which was raised through public donations.
The drivers are now seeking a refund of the balance fees they had paid Mr Ravi.
Dipolar Disorder
On Monday, Mr Ravi also suddenly added that he was bipolar.
Back in 2006, Mr Ravi was diagnosed with bipolar disorder, which causes extreme mood swings that include emotional highs (mania or hypomania) and lows (depression).
He was suspended from practising law in 2015, but could practise again after four years.
The 52-year-old also recently bought a new Mercedes-Benz:
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Featured Image: Facebook (Ravi MRavi)