Bar Council Elections : Supreme Court Reduces Nomination Fee For Specially Abled Advocates, Asks BCI To Ensure Their Representation

Taking note of the fact that the election process to various State Bar Councils has already commenced, the Supreme Court on Monday refrained from passing directions mandating reservation for specially abled advocates in Bar Councils at this stage. However, the Court directed the Bar Council of India (BCI) to initiate steps to amend the relevant provisions to ensure that specially abled lawyers have adequate representation in future elections.

The Court also ordered a substantial reduction in the nomination fee for specially abled advocates, lowering it from Rs. 1.25 lakh to Rs. 15,000 for contesting Bar Council elections.

The matter was heard by a Bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi. The Bench underlined that the objective of the Court was to ensure that advocates belonging to the specially abled category have an effective and meaningful presence in the decision-making bodies of the BCI.

Appearing for the BCI, Senior Advocate & BCI Chairperson Manan Kumar Mishra submitted that under the existing statutory framework, there was no scope to provide reservation in the main Bar Council, as no such reservation was envisaged by Parliament. He added that since elections in most State Bar Councils were already underway, structural changes at this stage would be difficult. However, he assured the Court that for the current year, specially abled advocates would be co-opted into various committees of the BCI to ensure their participation.

The Bench recorded this assurance, while making it clear that such co-option could only be an interim arrangement. The CJI observed that to ensure transparency and certainty, there would ultimately have to be a statutory amendment so that adequate representation for specially abled lawyers is built into the electoral framework itself.

Senior Advocate Indira Jaising raised the issue of the steep nomination fee required to contest Bar Council elections, arguing that it posed a significant barrier for specially abled advocates. Responding to this, the CJI suggested that the fee should be reduced to a symbolic amount for candidates from the specially abled category.

After discussion, Mishra informed the Court that the BCI would reduce the nomination fee for specially abled advocates to Rs. 15,000. The Court recorded that this concession would apply only to advocates belonging to the specially abled category and that no parity could be claimed by other candidates on this basis.

In its order, the Court noted that two issues arose for consideration. The first was ensuring adequate representation of specially abled advocates in Bar Council bodies, and the second was the financial barrier posed by the nomination fee. While declining to disturb the ongoing election process, the Bench directed the BCI to begin the process of amending its provisions so that, in future elections, adequate representation is provided to all categories for whom reservation is envisaged under the constitutional scheme or welfare statutes.

The Court expressed confidence that the BCI would take up the cause of effective representation of specially abled advocates and ensure that necessary amendments are carried out in a timely manner. It also observed that State Bar Councils may approach the Union Government for a mechanism to revise enrolment fees. The Bench added that there was no justification for High Courts to entertain challenges relating to Bar Council elections once the election process had already commenced.

Case : PANKAJ SINHA v. BAR COUNCIL OF INDIA AND ORS W.P.(C) No. 1261/2025 and S. M. VETRIVEL vs. THE SECRETARY, BAR COUNCIL OF INDIA|SLP(C) No. 036061 - / 2025