The Supreme Court of India is set to hear a petition challenging the amendment to Rule 32 of the Bar Council of India (BCI) Rules, 2015. This amendment allows the BCI to extend the tenure of State Bar Council members beyond the statutory period prescribed under the Advocates Act, 1961.

The matter was brought before a bench comprising Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta. The petition arises from a Rajasthan High Court order, which deferred the hearing on the challenge to Rule 32 of the BCI Rules, 2015.

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Petitioner’s Argument Against Rule 32 Amendment

The petitioner’s counsel strongly opposed the amendment, arguing that the BCI has been extending the tenure of State Bar Councils under the guise of verification of advocates. The counsel contended:

"What has happened is, under the garb of this verification of advocates, they have extended the period for more than 4-5 years, election has been withheld, my lords."

The Supreme Court directed that this matter be tagged with a similar pending case titled "Bar Council of India Vs. Shyam Bihari & Ors (Transfer Petition (Civil) No.2930/2024)."

Section 8 of the Advocates Act, 1961 lays down the tenure of elected members of State Bar Councils, stating:

"The term of office of an elected member of a State Bar Council (other than an elected member thereof referred to in section 54) shall be five years from the date of publication of the result of his election: Provided that where a State Bar Council fails to provide for the election of its members before the expiry of the said term, the Bar Council of India may, by order, for reasons to be recorded in writing, extend the said term for a period not exceeding six months."

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In cases where the State Bar Council fails to conduct elections within the prescribed period, Section 8-A mandates the formation of a special committee to manage the affairs until fresh elections are held. Previously, Rule 32 of the BCI Rules required an ad-hoc committee to oversee the preparation of electoral rolls under the special committee’s supervision.

With the amendment to Rule 32, the requirement to form an ad-hoc committee has been removed. Instead, BCI has granted itself the authority to extend the tenure of elected members and office bearers of State Bar Councils beyond the statutory limit prescribed under the Advocates Act, 1961.

The amendment was initially challenged before the Rajasthan High Court when the tenure of the elected members of the Bar Council of Rajasthan (BCR) ended on January 16, 2024. Even after utilizing the permitted six-month extension, the amended Rule 32 was invoked to further extend the term of BCR’s members beyond their original expiration date.

However, the Rajasthan High Court put the challenge to Rule 32 in abeyance, as the Supreme Court was already hearing similar petitions related to the amendment in November 2024.

Case Details: SHYAM BIHARI vs. BAR COUNCIL OF INDIA| SLP(C) No. 007328 - / 2025