The ill-advised statement of the chairman of the Bar Council of India (BCI) and BJP MP, Manan Kumar Mishra, that he would not allow the enrolment of law students of the Hyderabad law university, Nalsar, following their refusal to allow the Chief Justice of India to attend the convocation, has been roundly condemned. Mishra has since withdrawn his statement and apologised, and the CJI has also said that there was no need for such an intervention by the BCI. Mishra said that an annual convocation was a “monumental event” and the students’ refusal to allow the CJI to attend was “offensive, humiliating, and a mockery of students and their struggles”. This statement created outrage among the legal community across the country, and rightly so. There is no doubt that Mishra overstepped his jurisdiction. Enrolment is the right of a law graduate, not a favour done by the BCI. The Bar Council of India, a statutory body created under the Advocates Act 1961, can only lay down standards of conduct for advocates. It also has the power to recognise law universities, which is crucial.
The BCI has been mired in controversies for a long time, especially with regard to granting recognition to new private law colleges. Mishra holds control of this crucial job and has been accused of being dictatorial in such matters. There have also been questions as to how he managed to remain president of the BCI for 12 years even though it is an elected body. Only representatives of state Bar Councils can vote, and that can be easily managed. Mishra has converted the BCI into his fiefdom, his arrogant statement is an indication of that, as is his attempt to curry favour with the powers that be to show that he is more loyal than the king. The BCI has also faced the ire of the Supreme Court for the low standard of many universities and the law graduates they churn out. Mishra himself had said recently that almost 30 to 40 per cent of lawyers have fake degrees, pointing to the failure of the institution he heads. What has he been doing for 12 years as head of BCI? But Mishra sailed through all this and occupied the chair like a monarch answerable to none.
It is high-time the rules governing such bodies were changed. No one should be allowed to occupy the post of chairman or president for more than two terms. To people like Mishra, such posts confer a sense of entitlement. After the recent faux pas, he has lost the moral standing to continue in his post. The time has come for Mishra to resign.
