Two advocates, Manish Jain (Delhi) and Pradeep Kumar (Uttar Pradesh), have approached the Supreme Court of India under Article 32 of the Constitution, challenging what they term an arbitrary and unconstitutional decision by the Bar Council of India (BCI) to impose a ₹1.25 lakh non-refundable nomination fee for candidates contesting elections to the State Bar Councils.
The petition, filed through advocate Varun Mishra, contends that the BCI’s circular dated September 25, 2025 — which directs all State Bar Councils to fix the said amount as the nomination fee for their upcoming elections — is “excessive, discriminatory, and violative of fundamental rights under Articles 14, 19, and 21” of the Constitution.
The petitioners argue that the steep increase in the nomination fee will effectively bar ordinary advocates from contesting, leaving the electoral field open only to those with substantial financial resources. Such a move, they say, “concentrates power in the hands of a few and promotes money and muscle power in the legal profession.”
The plea further states that free and fair elections are an essential feature of democracy and a basic structure of the Constitution. By imposing a prohibitively high fee, the BCI has “distorted the democratic spirit” of Bar Council elections, the petition claims. It calls the circular a deliberate attempt to bypass the Supreme Court’s 2024 judgment in Gaurav Kumar vs. Union of India (W.P. (C) No. 352/2023), where the Court had held that Bar Councils cannot collect fees beyond what is prescribed under Section 24(1)(f) of the Advocates Act, 1961.
The petition also cites the Supreme Court’s order dated September 24, 2025, in M. Vardhan vs. Union of India (W.P. (C) No. 1319/2023), which had directed the BCI and all State Bar Councils to complete long-pending elections by January 31, 2026. The petitioners allege that the BCI’s subsequent circular introducing the steep nomination fee is “an indirect attempt to frustrate compliance” with that order.
Calling the BCI’s justification of “fund shortage” misleading, the petition points to public data suggesting that State Bar Councils already possess substantial funds, including nearly ₹99 crore with the Bar Council of Delhi alone.
The petitioner Manish Jain has prayed for the quashing of the BCI circular and sought directions to conduct elections as per the Supreme Court’s earlier mandate “without imposing arbitrary and unreasonable financial barriers.”
The matter raises critical questions about democratic representation within professional bodies and the accessibility of elected offices to advocates from all economic backgrounds. The Supreme Court is expected to list the matter in coming days.
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