The Supreme Court of India has approved the amendment carried out by the Bar Council of India (“BCI”) to Chapter III of the Bar Council of India Uniform Rules (and Mandatory Guidelines) for the Elections of Bar Councils, 2016, whereby office bearers of Bar Associations are now permitted to contest elections to State Bar Councils, subject to filing of an undertaking that they shall not simultaneously hold both posts upon election. The order was passed by a Bench comprising Hon’ble the Chief Justice Surya Kant and Hon’ble Mr. Justice Joymalya Bagchi on April 20, 2026.
The writ petitions before the Court had been filed by office bearers of various Bar Associations across the country, challenging the earlier Chapter III of the 2016 Rules, under which an elected office bearer of a Bar Association was completely barred from contesting in elections to a State Bar Council unless they first resigned from their position in the Bar Association. The said restriction was also challenged before the Supreme Court through a separate Writ Petition (Civil) No. 226 of 2026, which was disposed of on February 19, 2026, with a direction to the BCI to reconsider the provision and carry out a suitable amendment within one week. In that order, the Court had prima facie found no justification for creating such an artificial distinction under the Rules, which deprived office bearers of Bar Associations of High Courts, District Courts, or Sub-Divisional Courts from contesting State Bar Council elections.
In compliance with the said direction, the BCI carried out an amendment to Chapter III vide a notification circulated on March 11, 2026. However, as per Clause 2 of the amendment, it was conditioned to come into force only upon due approval of the Court. The amended Chapter III was accordingly placed on record before the Supreme Court for its consideration and approval.
Under the amended Chapter III, an advocate holding a post as an office bearer of a Bar Association is eligible to contest elections to a State Bar Council, provided that at the time of filing the nomination, such advocate files an undertaking before the Returning Officer stating that upon election to the State Bar Council, the advocate shall not simultaneously hold more than one representative post. Upon election, the advocate is required to exercise a written option within fifteen days from the date of declaration of results, choosing to retain only one of the two posts — either the Bar Association post or the State Bar Council membership — and intimate the same in writing to the concerned Bar Association and State Bar Council. Importantly, the amended provision further provides that if any elected advocate fails to exercise such option and communicate relinquishment within fifteen days, such advocate shall be deemed to have vacated the office of Member of the State Bar Council upon expiry of the said period. The amendment was made applicable to all cases where elections have not yet been held, from the date of its publication in the Official Gazette.
Upon going through the amended provisions, the Court was of the view that the grievances of the elected office bearers of Bar Associations had been adequately redressed. The Court accordingly approved the amendment and directed that “the provisions may, thus, be published in the Official Gazette of India without any delay.”
On the question of enforceability of the amended Chapter III with respect to elections to Bar Councils of different States, the Court held that a decision would have to be taken on a case-to-case basis. The writ petitions were accordingly disposed of, with liberty granted to any aggrieved party to approach the High Powered Election Supervisory Committee, headed by *Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia, former Judge of the Supreme Court of India, for appropriate directions. The Court directed that *”the Committee shall be at liberty to take an appropriate decision or lay down guidelines in relation thereto.”
Cause Title: Shyam Lal Thakur v. Bar Council of India & Ors. | Case No.: Writ Petition (Civil) No. 454 of 2026 and connected cases | Coram: Hon’ble the Chief Justice Surya Kant & Hon’ble Mr. Justice Joymalya Bagchi | Date of Decision: April 20, 2026
Click HERE to read ORDER.
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