BCI Asks State Bar Councils To Meet On August 16 To Prepare Panel Of 4 Women Members For Co-Option
The panel will be forwarded to the Chief Justice of the respective High Court .
The Bar Council of India (BCI) has asked elected members of all State Bar Councils to hold consultative meetings on August 16 to deliberate on the proposed co-option of women members and collectively recommend a panel of four eligible women advocates.
The communication, issued by BCI Principal Secretary Srimanto Sen, refers to the Supreme Court's August 4 order in Yogmaya M.G. v. Union of India & Ors, which authorised the Chief Justices of the High Courts to nominate two women members to the respective State Bar Councils from among former High Court Judges or senior women members of the Bar.
According to the communication, elected members of each State Bar Council are required to collectively identify and recommend a panel of four suitable women advocates after due deliberation.
The panel, along with the outcome of the deliberations and, where considered appropriate, the views expressed by the elected members, is to be forwarded by the Secretary of the concerned State Bar Council to the Chief Justice of the concerned High Court.
The BCI has said that while identifying candidates, elected members should have due regard to their professional standing, seniority, integrity and experience, besides geographical and regional representation.
The members have also been asked to consider the desirability of ensuring representation from areas that are presently not adequately represented in the State Bar Council, consistently with the parameters indicated by the Supreme Court.