Agencies
New Delhi
Days after the Bar Council of India (BCI) ordered State Bar Councils to freeze the enrolment of NALSAR’s entire 2026 graduating batch, only to withdraw the move following widespread criticism and a rebuke from the Supreme Court, BCI chairperson Manan Kumar Mishra has apologised to law students and said they “must always remain free to express their views”.
In an Independence Day letter addressed to “young friends”, Mishra said the developments of the past few days had caused “concern and anguish” among a section of the student community.
The apology comes after a controversy that began with a student campaign at the National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (NALSAR) in Hyderabad over the invitation to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant as chief guest for
its convocation.
More than 450 students had signed a representation to university authorities raising concerns over recent judicial developments, including the handling of alleged police excesses during the July 20
Parliament march.
The BCI subsequently issued an order on August 13 directing State Bar Councils not to enrol any student from NALSAR’s 2026 graduating batch as an advocate.
The Council also sought a report identifying those behind the student campaign and said a final decision would be taken
on August 19.
The move triggered a wider debate over whether a statutory professional body could collectively punish students who were not yet members of the legal profession for participating in a protest.
Following widespread criticism, the BCI modified its position and allowed NALSAR’s 2026 graduating batch to enrol, saying the “vast majority” of students were innocent.
The Council subsequently dropped the proceedings altogether.
Mishra had earlier said that “the matter stands closed” and that “everything has been withdrawn”.
“BCI stands for protecting the rights and interests of Law Students and Lawyers only,” he had said.
The episode, however, had already raised questions over the BCI’s powers and the manner in which its initial order was issued.
The matter also reached the Supreme Court, where a bench headed by CJI Surya Kant criticised the BCI’s intervention.
The court called the now-withdrawn order “absolutely unnecessary” and said students had
a right to protest.
