‘Witch hunt’: NLSIU students object to Bar Council chief, CJI Surya Kant attending convocation amid NALSAR row

Students of the National Law School of India University (NLSIU) have objected to Bar Council of India (BCI) Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra and Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant attending NLSIU's own convocation.

They have also demanded an unconditional apology from BCI to the student and faculty community of the National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (NALSAR) University of Law, Hyderabad.

The statement issued on Saturday and signed by 165 graduating students, 409 current students, and 128 alumni follows BCI's August 13 decisions to halt, and then restore within hours, the enrolment of NALSAR's 2026 graduating batch for objecting to CJI Surya Kant's proposed presence at their convocation.

The statement said that BCI chief Mannan Mishra does not represent the full body and therefore has no legal authority to issue such orders unilaterally. To be sure, the Bar Council of India comprises the Attorney General (AG), the Solicitor General (SG), and one member from each State Bar Council.

The statement noted that only the second letter stated it had the Council's approval, meaning the first did not, and called on the BCI to clarify its protocol for the Chairman's use of official letterhead.

"The BCI’s actions are, in fact, a direct attack on the fundamental right to free speech and expression guaranteed by Article 19(1)(a) of the Constitution. We, the students of NLSIU, have seen the words “Where the Mind is Without Fear” before entering our classrooms every day. We believe that the immortal words of Tagore reflect the ethos of all law universities and that students, faculty, and the administration must act and be encouraged to act according to their conscience and constitutional values, without fear. The BCI’s direction to NALSAR to investigate and “separately identify” students and faculty members involved in making the representation is nothing less than a witch-hunt," the statement added.

The demands

The letter put forward the following demands:

● The Bar Council of India unconditionally apologises to the student and faculty community at NALSAR for attempting to infringe their fundamental right to free speech and expression

● The Bar Council of India to explain the protocol for the use of the BCI’s official letterhead by the Chairperson

● The letter expressed strong disapproval of Manan Kumar Mishra attending the convocation of NLSIU without taking responsibility for his conduct

● Solidarity with NALSAR in their request to reconsider the choice of the Chief Justice of India as the Chief Guest for their Convocation, and express our strong disapproval of the CJI attending the convocation of NLSIU for the same reasons.