The Supreme Court has ordered a 30 per cent reservation for women in the State Bar Councils
The order came on two public interest litigations.
The top court has said that the BCI must put before it a report on the steps taken to enact its order.
The Supreme Court has ordered India’s Bar Council (BCI) to put in place a 30 per cent reservation for women in the upcoming State Bar Council elections to reflect the “constitutional ethos” of the profession.
“Keeping in view the constitutional ethos, the recent legislative initiatives and the orders passed by this Court from time to time, we expect that the Bar Council of India will construe the existing rules/framework in such a manner as to ensure that 30% seats in each State Bar Council are occupied by women members,” said a bench comprising Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi.
The top court was hearing two public interest litigation petitions (PIL) filed by Supreme Court advocates Yogamaya MG and Shehla Chaudhary.
The petition had pointed out that there were only nine per cent women officers in the Bar Councils across States, even though over 15 per cent of Indian lawyers were women. The petition had then said that it was urgent to have a reservation in order to ensure equity within the legal profession and proportionate representation in the Bar.
The court also said that the reservation would be for elected positions and also for posts of the Bar Council office bearers. The court said that the operative rules of the BCI would be deemed amended by the order, adding that the BCI must place before it what steps it has taken to implement the order.
Appearing for the petitioners, senior advocate Shobha Gupta, argued that the current scheme under the Advocates Act, 1961 had resulted in “systemic exclusion of women”. She pointed out that the five-phase Bar Council elections were scheduled between January and April 2026 and had not made any provision for women’s representation. She further added that the petition was of some urgency since the Bar elections only take place every five years which would leave women without assured participation for another half-decade.
Senior advocate Gurukumar, who appeared for the BCI, told the court that such a reservation would require amendments to the 1961 Act. He added that several State Bar Councils had already started the election process so incorporating any changes would not be easy on short notice.
The Chief Justice, however, assured the bar body that the Court would oversee the implementation of such a reservation. “We will resolve issues as they arise. You come out with a notification on Monday,” he said.
The petitions were filed after the top court’s May 2, 2024, order of the top court directing a 30 per cent reservation in the executive committee of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), including one office-bearer post, for women.
Speaking on the judgement, the Supreme Court Women Lawyers Association (SCWLA) has expressed its “profound joy and heartfelt appreciation for the landmark judgment of the Hon’ble Supreme Court of India.”
