Allahabad High Court Declares Bar Council's Directive on Bar Association Elections Unauthorized

Court Affirms Bar Associations' Autonomy in Conducting Elections as per Their Bye-laws

In a significant judgment, the Allahabad High Court has ruled that the Bar Council of India lacks the authority to regulate or control the elections of Bar Associations, which are governed by their own bye-laws. The court emphasized that both the Bar Council of India and the State Bar Council of Uttar Pradesh overstepped their legal boundaries by attempting to impose an embargo on Bar Association elections in the state.

The decision came in response to a petition filed by Dinesh Kumar Shukla, challenging a directive from the Bar Council of India, which had instructed the State Bar Council to prevent Bar Associations from holding elections between November 15, 2025, and February 2026. The directive aimed to avoid scheduling conflicts with the Bar Council elections. However, the court found that neither the Bar Council of India nor the State Bar Council possesses statutory authority to issue such directives to Bar Associations.

The judgment, delivered by Justices Atul Sreedharan and Anish Kumar Gupta, clarified that while the Bar Council of India can exercise general supervision over State Bar Councils under Sections 7(g) and 48-B of the Advocates Act, 1961, this supervision does not extend to controlling Bar Association elections. The court further directed that Bar Associations should conduct their elections according to their bye-laws, with a mandatory ten-day gap between their elections and those of the State Bar Council to prevent scheduling conflicts.

This ruling underscores the autonomy of Bar Associations in managing their electoral processes and limits the oversight powers of higher Bar Councils over district-level associations.

Bottom Line:

Bar Council of India has no authority to control or regulate elections of Bar Associations, which are governed by their own bye-laws. State Bar Council also lacks the authority under existing laws to direct Bar Associations to withhold their elections.

Statutory provision(s): Advocates Act, 1961 Sections 7(g), 48-B

Dinesh Kumar Shukla v. State of U.P., (Allahabad)(DB) : Law Finder Doc Id # 2822481