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Students and alumni of the National Law School of India University (NLSIU), Bengaluru, have called on the Chief Justice of India (CJI) not to attend the university’s convocation. The students also expressed strong disapproval of Bar Council of India (BCI) chairman Manan Kumar Mishra attending the event, amid the ongoing controversy over the BCI’s action against students and faculty of NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad.
In a statement issued on August 15, 165 students from NLSIU’s graduating Class of 2026, along with 409 current students and 128 alumni, said that inviting people holding high office to confer degrees on students towards whom they had “publicly expressed their disdain and condescension” was “offensive, humiliating, and a mockery of students and their struggles”.
The students also expressed solidarity with NALSAR students and faculty over the BCI’s actions, including its directions to the university to identify students and faculty members who had participated in a representation. The BCI had subsequently closed the proceedings against NALSAR, but the NLSIU students said this did not change the nature or impact of the actions.
“We stand in solidarity with NALSAR in their request to reconsider the choice of the Chief Justice of India as Chief Guest for their Convocation and express our strong disapproval of the CJI attending the convocation of NLSIU for the same reasons,” the statement said.
The students also said they were opposed to Mishra attending the NLSIU convocation “without taking responsibility for his conduct”.
The statement comes after the BCI issued two letters on August 13 concerning the representation by NALSAR students and faculty. The NLSIU students described the BCI’s proceedings as “unconstitutional and illegal”, saying that the fact that the proceedings had been closed did not “dilute the responsibility of the Chairman and the BCI”.
They said the BCI had not acknowledged the “arbitrary and illegal nature” of its actions even after recalling its ban on enrolment and the inquiry order.
The students further argued that the BCI’s actions were ultra vires of The Advocates Act, 1961, saying the law did not permit the BCI to direct State Bar Councils to arbitrarily suspend or ban the enrolment of a person otherwise qualified to be an advocate.
They also questioned the BCI chairman's authority to issue such orders unilaterally. “The Chairman does not represent the entire Bar Council of India,” the statement said, citing Section 4 of the Advocates Act, which provides for a council comprising the Attorney General, the Solicitor General, and one member from every State Bar Council.
The students said the BCI’s direction to NALSAR to identify students and faculty involved in the representation was “nothing less than a witch-hunt”.
By labelling the constitutionally guaranteed student expression of free speech as “dirty” and “nasty politics” and a “serious situation” of “obstruction” and "disruption", the BCI has sent an unabashed threat against students and faculty members, a modus operandi that we have seen play out over and over again across universities in the country. The BCI’s actions create a chilling effect on free speech not only for the students and faculty members at NALSAR but for students and citizens across the country by sending them a clear signal that any act of dissent will be met with severe personal and professional consequences,” the statement said.
The students also rejected the BCI’s description of students as having been “misled” and “instigated” by “outsiders”. “To be absolutely clear, we write this letter of our own volition and not under the influence of any amorphous ‘outsiders’,” they said.
“As young lawyers and citizens of this country, we demand a better BCI,” the students said.
The statement also linked the dispute to the significance of a university convocation for students and their families.
“A University Convocation is a monumental event in a student’s academic life meant to celebrate years of hard work and perseverance. In a country where access to higher education is severely restricted by barriers of class, caste, and gender and poorly designed and conducted entrance examinations, a Convocation marks an important achievement for families. In this context, inviting persons in high office to confer degrees to students towards whom they have publicly expressed their disdain and condescension is offensive, humiliating, and a mockery of students and their struggles
The students have demanded that the BCI unconditionally apologise to the NALSAR student and faculty community for attempting to infringe their fundamental right to free speech and expression. They have also called on the BCI to explain the protocol for the use of its official letterhead by its chairperson.
