The Delhi High Court refused a plea by Ramesh Chandra Singh seeking BCD seat reservation for junior lawyers, noting he contested elections despite knowing the Bar Council of Delhi policy beforehand.
NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court declined to hear a petition seeking reservation of six seats in the Bar Council of Delhi (BCD) for advocates with under 10 years of practice.
The petitioner, advocate Ramesh Chandra Singh, who enrolled with the BCD in 2022, had contested the BCD elections held in February 2026.
Justice Amit Bansal refused to entertain the plea after observing that Singh was aware of the BCD’s reservation policy yet participated in the elections without objection.
The court held that he cannot be permitted to challenge the BCD’s December election notification at this stage.
The Court said,
“It is an undisputed position that the petitioner was a contestant in the BCD election that was held in February 2026. He was aware of the notification dated December 24, 2025, in terms of which reservation had been made only for advocates with more than ten years practice and lady advocates. Yet he chose to contest the elections without protesting in any manner. Now the elections have already been conducted and the counting process is on. At this stage, the petitioner cannot be permitted to challenge the election notification in terms of which the elections are held. In terms of the Supreme Court judgment, once the election process has begun, the courts cannot interfere. In view thereof, the present petition is dismissed as not maintainable,”
The court also dismissed the advocate’s plea for proportional representation of all advocate categories.
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The judge made clear there is no vested right for advocates to demand such reservations.
The Court stated,
“Merely because reservation has been made for advocates with more than ten years experience and lady advocates, it does not create any vested right in favour of advocates with 10 years experience including the petitioner to seek a reservation. Accordingly, I do not find any merit in the petition,”
It was argued on the advocate’s behalf that the BCD election notification for twenty-three members reserved twelve seats for advocates with at least 10 years’ practice and five seats for women candidates.
He urged that the remaining six seats ought to be reserved for advocates with less than 10 years’ practice, alleging that the absence of such reservation violated the right to equality under Article 14 of the Constitution of India.
Counsel for the BCD submitted that the petition was belated, noting that the elections had already been completed and vote counting was underway.
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