BCI Row: Manan Mishra, Chairman of the Bar Council of India (BCI), clarified on Saturday that he will not resign, asserting that he has remained in the post as per the constitutional guidelines. While citing the Advocates Act, he stated that there is no restriction on the tenure of the chairman. His statement came amid the demands of resignation from the civil societies and BCI's co-chairman YR Sadasiva Reddy.

"Bar Council of India is a statutory body under the Advocates Act. It’s an act created by Parliament. Now the act does not limit any sort of restriction on the tenure of the chairman. Therefore under the act I have been elected. This is my seventh tenure," Mishra said.

Earlier, in his letter to Mishra, Reddy highlighted several issues, including the alleged appointment of the chairman's relatives to key positions, transfer of funds to private trusts, and "illegal" action against the NALSAR graduating students. The resignation demands came a day after Mishra asserted that he will not resign, further slamming the Cockroach Janata Party (CJP).

What Reddy Said In His Letter?

In his six-page letter to the chairman, Reddy claimed that the council has drifted from its standard due to his actions, further urging him to tender resignation within 15 days. "This Council has drifted very far from that standard...I call upon you, in the plainest terms, to tender your resignation from the office of Chairman...forthwith," Reddy said in his letter.

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Reddy further alleged that the law colleges seeking approval or renewal from the BCI have been "pressured" to make contribution to the trust of the council. "The power of approval and renewal under the Advocates Act is a regulatory power. It is not a licence to raise funds," the co-chairman pointed out.

In his letter, Reddy also pointed that a large number of job appointments in the Council are people linked with the chairperson himself, adding that the process was not completed in a transparent manner.

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Row Over Manan Mishra's Directive

The co-chairperson also criticized the advisory in which Mishra had asked the state councils to not enroll the graduation batch of NALSAR university, Hyderabad.

Reddy asserted that the advisory was issued without consulting the officials of the council. Earlier, a massive row erupted over Mishra's letter following the NALSAR student's opposition to the announcement of the Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant in a college event.