Because an advocate submitted a disputed or allegedly fabricated caste certificate at some stage of the enrolment, the Delhi high court said, the Bar Council of India (BCI) does not have unrestricted power to remove an advocate’s name from the rolls merely.
“Every incorrect statement made by an applicant, or every incorrect declaration contained in an enrolment form, cannot by itself be treated as a misrepresentation as to an essential fact within the meaning of Section 26(1). The court, in its 58-page verdict, set aside BCI’s order, saying the disputed caste certificate had not enabled her to secure admission to the LLB course or obtain her law degree. The court delivered the verdict while hearing a petition filed by advocate Dipinder Kaur challenging the BCI decision to remove her name from the rolls of the Bar Council of Delhi (BCD).
This Court, therefore, holds that the mere furnishing of the disputed Caste Certificate, in the peculiar facts and circumstances of the present case, cannot be treated as sufficient to attract the proviso to Section 26(1) of the Advocates Act,” the court said.
