The Supreme Court heard a plea seeking reservation for women in Bar Council elections and modified its earlier directions for Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. CJI Surya Kant said greater women representation will strengthen Bar leadership and should not be treated as an adversarial issue.
New Delhi: The Supreme Court of India on Thursday heard a writ petition seeking reservation for women advocates in Bar Council elections across the country. The petition has been filed by Yogamaya M.G. against the Union of India and others in W.P.(C) No. 581/2024.
The matter was heard by a Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymala Bagchi.
During the hearing, the Court discussed the position of Bar Council elections in several States, especially Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. While making oral observations, CJI Surya Kant noted,
“Telangana is a highly progressive State and there should be no difficulty. In any case, the notification has not yet been issued.”
Senior Advocate Shobha Gupta, appearing for women lawyers from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, informed the Court about the election timelines.
She stated,
“The notification is scheduled for 20 December. Even for Andhra Pradesh, the notification has not been issued so far.”
Responding to the submissions, Bar Council of India (BCI) Chairman Manan Mishra expressed concern over repeated litigation on the issue and said,
“This litigation seems to be endless. this year, reservation should cannot exceed 15%.”
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After hearing the parties, the Supreme Court passed a detailed order clarifying the position of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh in its earlier directions. The Court recorded in its order:
“We have heard Ms. Gupta appearing for women lawyers from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. She has drawn our attention to the Bar Council election schedule, which shows that while the general voter list has already been published, the election notification is slated to be issued on the 28th and nominations will open on the 29th. As far as Andhra Pradesh is concerned, no election notification has been issued so far. Paragraph 4 of our order dated 8 December requires correction. Accordingly, paragraph 4 stands modified, and the Bar Councils of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh shall be deleted from that paragraph. Both States’ Bar Councils shall instead be included under paragraphs 6 and 7 onwards.”
The Court further clarified its direction by stating:
“The earlier direction is modified. Both Telangana and Andhra Pradesh shall be included among the Bar Councils covered under paragraph 6.”
When counsel appearing for the Uttarakhand Bar Council sought an exemption from the directions, the Chief Justice made strong observations in support of women’s representation in Bar bodies. CJI Surya Kant said,
“After all, these are your own colleagues. Bar Council elections are purely vote based those securing the highest votes are elected. The BCI may not have been initially agreeable, but once a proposal was placed, it was accepted. This should not be viewed as an adversarial issue by State Bar Councils. Increased representation will only strengthen leadership.”
The Chief Justice also suggested a practical approach to resolve any future difficulties and emphasised coordination within the legal fraternity.
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He observed,
“If any difficulty arises, the State may first approach Mr. Manan Mishra, considering the vast experience that senior members of the Bar bring to such matters. We request the BCI and Mr. Mishra to convene a meeting of all elected members from across the country.”
The matter highlights the Supreme Court’s continued focus on improving women’s representation in Bar Council leadership and encouraging State Bar Councils and the Bar Council of India to treat the issue as a collective reform rather than a dispute.
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