CJI Surya Kant Backs NALSAR Students as BCI U Turns

The Narendra Modi government at the centre had been facing a problematic situation for the last few weeks since the start of the student protest in Delhi. This is the first major speed breaker for the government, and the repercussions were felt severely.

This was followed by a piece of unwarranted action last night. After students of the Nalsar law, University in Hyderabad protested the invitation of chief Justice Suryakant for their convocation, the Bar Council reacted sharply by saying the students of this university must not be employed in any positions till further notice.

This immediately got the negative feedback on social media and people said the bar Council must immediately refrain from taking any such action.

The early reaction was so very severe and astounding that the bar council immediately took back the decision and said they have no intention of stopping institutions from hiring these students.

The fact that the bar Council chairman, Manan Kumar Mishra himself is a BJP MP added more political angle to this development, which did not paint a good optic for the Modi government at the Centre.

The chief Justice had to intervene later and issue a statement that this was a dialogue between him and the students, and there was no reason for the Bar Council to intervene. He maintained a neutral stand and sided with the students on that note.

So far, the Bar Council’s repeated U turns within a few hours have raised questions over its independence. The developments may fuel perceptions that even an institution expected to function independently is coming under political influence during the Modi government, creating an uncomfortable image in the eyes of the public.

People are commenting that the central government must be extremely careful with such sensitive matters as repeated doldrums can weaken the otherwise strong judicial system.