In a strongly worded statement the 2026 graduating batch of NLSIU Bangalore along with over 120 alumni have condemned Bar Council of India's (BCI) now withdrawn action against outgoing batch of students of NALSAR, Hyderabad and have demanded an "unconditional apology" from BCI to NALSAR's student and faculty community.

128 NLSIU alumni, 165 Students of the graduating class of 2026 and 409 current students from various programmes including the BALLB (Hons), LLB (Hons), LLM, and MPP courses have signed the Statement.

The letter by the graduating students of NLSIU has also demanded the reconsideration of CJI Surya Kant as the Chief Guest at NALSAR's convocation while simultaneously registering their 'disapproval' of the CJI gracing NLSIU's own upcoming convocation, along with the attendance of BCI Chairman and senior advocate Manan Kumar Mishra.

Last week, there were reports that a section of outgoing students had opposed inviting the CJI for the convocation over his comments on the Delhi student protests.

The NLSIU students and alumuni in their statement have:

• Demanded an unconditional apology from the BCI to the student and faculty community at NALSAR for attempting to infringe their fundamental right to free speech and expression

• Call upon BCI to explain protocol for the use of its official letterhead by the Chairperson

• Expressed strong disapproval of BCI Chairperson Manan Kumar Mishra attending the convocation of NLSIU without taking full responsibility for his conduct

• Expressed solidarity with NALSAR's request to reconsider the choice of the Chief Justice of India as Chief Guest for their Convocation, and similar disapproval of the CJI attending NLSIU's convocation for the same reasons.

The statement, released on Independence Day, comes days after the BCI issued and subsequently withdrew letters dated August 13, 2026, that directed State Bar Councils not to enrol NALSAR's 2026 graduating batch as advocates.

The letter also calls the BCI's now-withdrawn directive as 'unconstitutional', along with demanding explanation on Chairman's unilateral use of official letterhead.

While the BCI has since closed all proceedings against NALSAR, the NLSIU students asserted that “the fact that such unconstitutional and illegal 'proceedings' can be initiated by a statutory body against students and faculty members of a public university in the first place does not alter the nature or the larger impact of such actions."

The statement argues that the BCI's actions are ultra vires the Advocates Act, 1961. It contends that while the Act permits the BCI to lay down standards for professional conduct and promote legal education, it does not empower the body to order State Bar Councils, so as to arbitrarily suspend or ban the enrolment of a person qualified to be an advocate.

“Section 24A of the Act limits disqualification to specific cases of criminal convictions and does not contemplate disbarring enrollment on the basis of having 'no regard or respect' for a judicial officer”, the statement notes.

The students also question the Chairman's authority to unilaterally issue such orders, pointing to Section 4 of the Act, which states that the BCI is composed of the Attorney General, the Solicitor General, and one member from each State Bar Council.

“The Chairman has no legal powers to unilaterally issue orders of this nature”, the statement adds.

Characterising the BCI's actions as a 'direct attack on the fundamental right to free speech and expression guaranteed by Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution', the students invoked Rabindranath Tagore's immortal words 'Where the Mind is Without Fear'', which greet them before entering their classrooms every day.

“…Students, faculty, and the administration must act and be encouraged to act according to their conscience and constitutional values, without fear”, the statement denotes further.

The Statement says that BCI's direction to NALSAR to investigate and 'separately identify' students and faculty members involved in the representation is 'nothing less than a witch-hunt'.

The signatories have also taken strong exception to the BCI's characterisation of the student expression as 'dirty' and 'nasty politics', calling it an 'unabashed threat' with a 'chilling effect on free speech' for students across the country, the letter states further.

The statement highlights what it termed a 'concerning pattern' of the BCI Chairman using the statutory body to make partisan political comments. It noted that the first letter was issued unilaterally, with the subsequent letter mentioning 'approval of the Council'.

“…Instead of focusing on the poor state of legal education and professional development in the country, the Chairman has abused his official position to issue official statements calling the protesting students at Jantar Mantar 'anti-social and anti-national forces' acting under the influence of 'foreign adversaries'”, the statement said.

“…We stand in unconditional solidarity with our fellow students at NALSAR who have shown exemplary courage and moral conviction in speaking truth to power”, the statement concludes.

Click Here To Read/Download Statement