NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Monday issued a notice to the Bar Council of India (BCI) on a BJP leader’s plea seeking to debar MPs and MLAs from practising as advocates.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra issued a notice to the BCI on a plea filed by Ashwani Kumar Upadhyaya, a Delhi BJP leader, which contends that lawmakers practising as lawyers is against the spirit of BCI rules, which require advocates not to be engaged in any full-time trade, business, occupation or profession as it would amount to conflict of interest.
The court, while slating the hearing for April 23, asked for BCI’s perception of the rules as the body’s main function is to regulate the legal profession and legal education in the country.It is estimated that more than 500 lawmakers practise as lawyers.
Attorney General K K Venugopal, whose assistance was sought by the apex court on February 17, referred to an earlier judgement in a similar case and sought dismissal of the PIL.