Kochi: A group of 25 law graduates from Kerala have moved the Kerala High Court seeking directions to the Bar Council of India ( BCI) and the Bar Council of Kerala(BCK) to provide the enrolments.
The law graduates submitted that BCK was supposed to conduct enrolment on 21 May, but the online registration was stopped on 20 March after the Supreme Court directed that that the BCI must have Uniform enrolment fees for all State Bar Council.
The delay of BCK has caused irreparable damage to the petitioner, according to the petitioner. The plea mentioned, ” The 1st respondent (BCK) who is bestowed with the responsibility to regulate and monitor and uplift the legal fraternity is now obstructing these petitioners’ right to enrolment, right to livelihood, right to practice, and right to carry on their profession in their life. Even though the petitioners herein have on numerous occasions contacted the 1st respondent to get their grievances redressed the 1st respondent has shown their lethargy and has been empathetic to these petitioners.”
The petitioner mentioned that they have been eagerly waiting for the enrolment after they completed their law degree, but even after representations, no positive steps have been taken in the direction.
They also mentioned in the plea that they were ready to pay the fees fixed by BCK and need their enrolment to apply for the jobs.
The petitioners argued, “the actions/inactions on the part of the respondents (BCK and BCI) in the matter of not conducting the enrollment as scheduled before which is highly arbitrary, unjust and illegal.”
The High Court division bench had directed the BCK to collect enrolment fees of Rs. 750 from all law graduates who wished to be enrolled as advocates, until an uniform code is brought out by BCI.
An appeal was filed by BCK challenging an interim order directing the BCK to provisionally accept enrolment applications by the law graduates who moved the petition upon paying Rs. 750. A meeting to consider this would be done by BCI and the High Court took cognisance of this
