Four law students challenge Bar’s decision in High Court

“The petitioners were astonished on receiving the information on the website of The Bar Council of India,wherein it was highlighted,“No advocate enrolled under Section 24 of the Advocates Act,1961 shall be entitled to practice under Chapter IV of the Advocates Act,1961,unless such advocate successfully passes the All India Bar Examination conducted by the Bar Council of India. It is clarified that the Bar Examination shall be mandatory for all law students graduating from academic year 2009-2010 and onwards and enrolled as advocates under Section 24 of the Advocates Act,1961,” read the petition,filed by senior advocate Sanjay Bansal.

Talking to Newsline,Bansal said,“The post-enrollment restriction or the embargo placed by the Bar on the right to practice in the absence of any condition stipulated in any of the provisions contained in the Advocates Act,1961,particularly the regulating provisions with regard to right to practice,is not only arbitrary and unreasonable but violative of Articles 14,19 (1)(g) and 21 of the Constitution of India and therefore,deserves to be declared as unconstitutional and illegal.”

It has further been submitted that the right to practice cannot be truncated by making rules and imposing unreasonable conditions. “The Bar Council of India,which is a statutory body,cannot impose any pre-enrollment conditions before a person is granted a licence to practice,neither can it impose post-enrollment conditions like qualifying of an examination,in the absence of any express power conferred on the Bar Council of India under Section 49 of the Act providing for holding of an examination as a pre-requisite condition for right to practice,” read the petition,which will come up for hearing before the vacation Bench on Friday.