Lawyers' Union Condemns BCI Order Barring Enrolment of NALSAR 2026 Batch, Demands End to Enquiry Over CJI Protest

New Delhi: The All India Lawyers Union (AILU) has strongly condemned an order issued by the Bar Council of India (BCI) Chairman on August 13, 2026, which directed all State Bar Councils to withhold enrolment of NALSAR University of Law's 2026 graduating batch until further orders — a move linked to student opposition over Chief Justice of India Surya Kant's invitation to their convocation.

The controversy stems from a section of outgoing NALSAR students who had objected to the CJI's participation in their convocation ceremony, citing his remarks on the Delhi student protests. In response, the BCI Chairman issued a blanket order barring enrolment of the entire graduating batch, a step AILU has described as wholly disproportionate and without legal basis.

In a statement issued by its General Secretary P V Surendranath, AILU argued that the Bar Council of India holds no disciplinary jurisdiction over law students and that such action falls entirely outside its powers as a regulator of legal education. The union maintained that the students' conduct did not amount to contempt of court or any violation of law, and that penalising an entire batch over a peaceful representation made by some students was an unwarranted and excessive exercise of regulatory authority.

AILU further contended that students voicing disagreement over the choice of chief guest for their own convocation were simply exercising their right to opinion on a matter that directly concerned them. Characterising this as a lack of respect for the judiciary and using it to bar entry into the legal profession, the union said, wrongly equates legitimate dissent with indiscipline and sets a troubling precedent for how legal education is regulated in the country.

Order withdrawn within hours, but enquiry continues

The union noted that the BCI had withdrawn the enrolment bar within hours of issuing it, conceding that the overwhelming majority of the 2026 batch had no involvement in the matter. AILU said the fact that such a sweeping and poorly considered order was issued in the first place, without any enquiry or consideration of individual students' roles, reflects poorly on the BCI's exercise of its regulatory functions over new entrants to the legal profession.

Despite the withdrawal of the enrolment order, AILU said an enquiry into NALSAR students and faculty connected to the convocation representation remains ongoing, with a decision expected on August 19, 2026. The union has demanded that this enquiry be dropped entirely, asserting that the BCI has no business investigating or penalising students and teachers for expressing opinions within their own academic institution. Such an enquiry, it said, amounts to intimidation designed to create a chilling effect on free expression among law students and faculty, and is unbecoming of a statutory regulator.

Union alleges broader pattern of authoritarian conduct

AILU said the episode is not an isolated one, pointing to what it called a recent series of actions by the BCI reflecting undemocratic and authoritarian tendencies in its functioning. The union alleged that the Bar Council has not only failed to protect the independence of the Bar from internal and external pressures, but has also increasingly ceded ground to the executive and judiciary.

Calling on the BCI to prioritise the independence and integrity of the legal profession, AILU demanded that the Council immediately and entirely drop the enquiry, and refrain from taking any further direct or indirect action against NALSAR students or faculty in connection with the convocation matter