The Delhi High Court has disposed of a writ petition filed by provisionally enrolled advocates seeking the inclusion of their names in the electoral roll for the upcoming Bar Council of Delhi (BCD) elections. The Court directed the petitioners to approach the Special Committee constituted to conduct the elections, citing recent Supreme Court directions that relegate individual election-related grievances to the said Committee.
Case Background
The petition was filed by Umesh Kumar and other advocates who had obtained their LLB degrees and were provisionally enrolled with the Bar Council of Delhi in August 2025. The petitioners had appeared for the All India Bar Examination-XX (AIBE), the results of which had not yet been declared at the time of filing the petition.
The grievance raised by the petitioners was that their names were excluded from the electoral roll for the impending BCD elections solely because the AIBE results were pending.
Arguments and Submissions
Senior Advocate Mr. Vikas Pahwa, appearing for the petitioners, submitted that the petitioners had already submitted their respective Online Verification Forms to the Bar Council of Delhi. He stated that “all the petitioners have been verified and have received WhatsApp communication in this regard.”
Mr. Preet Pal Singh, counsel for the Bar Council of India (Respondent No. 2), informed the Court on instructions that the “AIBE results are likely to be declared today.”
Mr. T. Singhdev, representing the Bar Council of Delhi (Respondent No. 3), drew the Court’s attention to the order passed by the Supreme Court of India on November 18, 2025, in the case of M. Varadhan v. Union of India & Anr. (W.P.(C) No. 1319/2019). He submitted that the Supreme Court is seized of the matter regarding the holding of elections to various Bar Councils, including the modalities and timelines.
Court’s Observations and Analysis
Justice Amit Bansal relied heavily on the Supreme Court’s directions in M. Varadhan, which established High-Powered Election Committees to supervise State Bar Council elections. The Court noted that for Delhi, a “Special Committee” comprising two eminent Senior Advocates and the Additional Solicitor General of India has been constituted to perform the functions of the High-Powered Election Committee.
The Court referred to Paragraph 19 of the Supreme Court’s order, which stated:
“During the course of hearing, it is seen that several lawyers have individual and varied grievances. We are afraid such individual grievances cannot be addressed in these proceedings. Liberty is, hence, granted to them to apply before the High-Powered Election Committee(s) for redressal of their individual issue(s).”
Furthermore, the High Court observed that the Supreme Court explicitly barred lower courts from intervening in these decisions. Paragraph 20 of the Supreme Court order quoted in the judgment read:
“Any person who is aggrieved by the decision of the High Powered Election Committee shall be at liberty to approach the High-Powered Supervisory Committee. The decision taken by the Supervisory Committee shall be final. No civil court or High Court shall entertain any petition(s) against such decision.”
Justice Bansal also noted that a coordinate bench of the Delhi High Court had previously passed a similar order on December 3, 2025, in Surendar Kumar v. Bar Council of Delhi & Anr. (W.P.(C) 18355/2025), directing a petitioner to approach the High-Powered Election Committee.
Decision
In light of the Supreme Court’s mandate, the High Court declined to entertain the petition on merits and instead issued the following directions:
- The petitioners were directed to file a representation regarding their grievance before the Special Committee “by tomorrow.”
- The Court noted that the publication of the final electoral roll is scheduled for January 17, 2026.
- Consequently, the Special Committee was directed to consider and decide the petitioners’ representation on or before January 12, 2026.
The writ petition along with pending applications was disposed of.
Case Details:
- Case Title: Umesh Kumar & Ors. v. Union of India & Ors.
- Case Number: W.P.(C) 158/2026
- Court: High Court of Delhi
- Coram: Justice Amit Bansal
