Gujarat High Court Allows Persons Having Full Time/Part Time Jobs Having Law Degree To Get Enrolled, Enrolment Certificate Shall Be Withheld

The Bench ordered,

Background

To this, the Bench of Chief Justice Vikram Nath and Justice J. B. Pardiwala had asked the Bar Council of Gujarat to accept her application (for AIBE) and had directed the Council to not ask the writ applicant to resign from her current employment.

The Court in its Friday Judgment noted that "the Bar Council of Gujarat acted very smart so as to see that the order passed by this Court dated 06.10.2020 is diluted or not given effect too."

The Court noted that the Enrollment Number ordinarily issued by the Bar Council is like G/123-2020 or G/1234-2020, i.e,. consisting of numeral except for the 'G'.

"The Bar Council of Gujarat issued the Enrollment Number as G/Provisional-I/2020, which has not been accepted by the Online Registration System", noted the Court further.

Apart from this, before the Court, the argument canvassed on behalf of the Bar Council of India was that if the writ applicant is permitted to be enrolled as an Advocate, the same may open flood gates for the others.

Court's Judgment

The principal question which arose before the Court was whether it should strike down Rules 1 and 2 of the Bar Council of Gujarat (Enrollment) Rules being violative of Article 14 of the Constitution or it should uphold the validity by adopting the principle of 'reading down' or 'reading into' so as to make the rule effective and workable and ensure the attainment of the object of the rule.

The Court deliberated on the questions as to what is the object behind Rules 1 and 2 of the State Bar Council (Enrollment) Rules and Rule 49 of the Bar Council of India Rules?. Why such a restriction is sought to be imposed? Why the statute does not permit a person enrolled as an advocate with any particular Bar Council of the State from taking up any other vocation?

The Court specifically observed,

"It is too much to say that a person desirous to get himself enrolled as an Advocate with the State Bar Council should be asked at its inception to give up any other vocation, business or job and only, thereafter, he can be enrolled on the roll of the State Bar Council."

The Court further said,

"We are dealing with a matter, in which, as single mother has come before us saying that no sooner she is enrolled as an Advocate after clearing the Bar Council Entrance Exam, then she would file a declaration on oath that she has given up the job which she has as on date. The lady is in a helpless situation. Today, if she gives up her job being a single mother, and god forbid if she is unable to clear the All India Bar examination, then she would be left without any means of livelihood."