Manan Kumar Mishra, the chairman of the Bar Council of India (BCI), announced on Saturday that he has the backing of two-thirds of the Council’s members. This statement comes in response to calls for his resignation and accusations of financial and administrative misconduct made by BCI co-chairman YR Sadasiva Reddy. Mishra’s firm stance highlights ongoing tensions within the Council regarding leadership and accountability.
Also Read I BCI Co-Chair seeks Chairman Manan Mishra’s resignation, cites NALSAR row: ‘The Bar deserves better’ Reddy did not attend a BCI Council meeting held on Saturday. “I have not received any letter. I have only seen it on social media. I command the support of two-thirds of members . So long as I command the support of the majority, who is he to seek my resignation? When HT contacted Reddy, he initially refused to comment. But, in a video interview to PTI, Reddy made much of the same allegations as in the purported letter: “Financial and administrative irregularities, alleged nepotism and the NALSAR enrolment controversy has prompted me to seek BCI chairman Manan Kumar Mishra’s resignation. “He belongs to a rival Congress party and it is evident he is playing dirty party politics.
Because the BCI order on NALSAR was withdrawn, this man has got an opportunity to open his mouth,” Mishra said, he has resorted to making all sorts of false and baseless allegations and just. Reddy, in a letter dated August 22 addressed to Mishra, seen by HT, demanded his immediate resignation and an independent probe into alleged irregularities in financial transactions, appointments and other decisions of the legal profession’s top regulatory body. The BCI has members representing 24 State Bar Councils. Reddy has sought Mishra’s resignation within 15 days and an independent audit of BCI accounts and the BCI Trust PEARL-First, PTI videos quoted him as saying.
Mishra said when asked about the letter. After the contents of the letter were read out to him, he said, “I do not know about the letter,” raising questions about its authenticity.
I have been a member of the Bar Council of India for around a decade and had refrained from raising such issues earlier as we wanted to safeguard the interests of the institution and did not want to act against its ethos.
