CHENNAI: The licences of 1,025 lawyers were suspended by the Bar Council of Tamil Nadu and Puducherry for not clearing the All India Bar Exam.
According to a circular from council secretary C Raja Kumar, if any suspended advocate continues to practice after the suspension order, removal proceedings will be initiated. The circular added that such lawyers are also not eligible for benefits under the welfare fund scheme and not entitled to vote in the bar association elections.
From 2010, the exam was made mandatory by Bar Council of India (BCI). However, the BCI, in its meeting held on August 26, 2012, permitted newly enrolled advocates to practice for two years and held that if they fail to clear the exam within the prescribed period, they would become ineligible.
Similarly, on July 3, 2015, the first bench of the Madras high court headed by the then Chief Justice SK Kaul directed the council to suspend those advocates, who have not cleared the exam within the stipulated period of two years. It is in this background, the present circular has been issued by Bar Council.