Supreme Court says BCI cannot punish law students
The Bench drew a hard line after the NALSAR enrolment threat.
The Supreme Court on Thursday said the Bar Council of India has no power to discipline or punish law students.
A Bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana was hearing a petition tied to NALSAR Hyderabad. In August, the BCI had moved to bar the 2026 batch from enrolment after students protested inviting the CJI as their convocation chief guest. The protest letter cited his courtroom response when lawyers sought an urgent hearing over alleged police action at Jantar Mantar.
The BCI later withdrew the circulars. The Court still ruled that the Advocates Act, 1961 gives the council no express or implied power to take disciplinary action against students. That power sits with the university, the Bench said. The Bar Council may set education standards, and it may look at fitness only after a graduate seeks enrolment as an advocate.
"The BCI has no jurisdiction or statutory competence as regards students. That is for their universities," Chief Justice Kant said. The August 13 communications were declared without jurisdiction. An earlier stay against punitive action by the BCI against NALSAR students or faculty was made absolute.
This was not only about one circular that got withdrawn. The Court put a clear fence around campus speech and who polices it.
For students at national law universities, the threat of a professional ban for protest is now on weaker ground. For the BCI, which also regulates legal education, the message is that education standards are one thing and punishing enrolled students is another.
The matter was closed after the withdrawal and the jurisdictional ruling. Watch whether State Bar Councils stay clear of pre-enrolment threats, and whether universities handle campus dissent without the regulator stepping in.