Another top Indian law college joins protest over Chief Justice invite after NALSAR row
A top Bengaluru law college has objected to inviting the Chief Justice as chief guest for a convocation, days after NALSAR University of Law in
A top Bengaluru law college has objected to inviting the Chief Justice as chief guest for a convocation, days after NALSAR University of Law in Hyderabad sparked a sharp dispute over the same issue. The fresh protest lands as the Bar Council of India scrambles to contain the fallout from its brief threat to block NALSAR graduates from enrolling as lawyers.
The latest opposition, reported from Bengaluru, follows a storm in Hyderabad that saw law students challenge the invitation to Chief Justice of India Surya Kant for NALSAR’s convocation. Around 450 students had sent six representations to the university administration on July 23, asking it to reconsider the invite after the court refused to hear pleas linked to police brutality during the recent Jantar Mantar protests organised by the Cockroach Janta Party.
BCI backs away after backlash
The Bar Council of India initially escalated the dispute on Aug. 13 by directing state bar councils not to enrol NALSAR’s 2026 graduates and by seeking details of students and faculty linked to the representations. It later withdrew that move, saying the graduating batch would be free to enrol with the state bar council of their choice and that no student should suffer for something they did not do.
BCI chairman Manan Kumar Mishra has since apologised to law students across the country. In a letter addressed on Independence Day, he said that if any of his words or actions in the controversy had hurt students’ feelings, he sincerely regretted and apologised for it.
He also said law students must be free to speak. That line matters. The row has reopened an old question in India’s legal system: how far the regulator can go when student protest clashes with institutional authority.
What the dispute is really about
Under India’s Advocates Act, 1961, enrolment of law graduates rests with state bar councils, while the BCI has supervisory and rule-making powers. That division was meant to keep entry to the profession from depending on pleasing judges. The NALSAR episode has now put that balance under fresh strain.
The controversy is also spreading beyond Hyderabad. The Bengaluru law college’s objection shows the issue is no longer confined to one campus or one invitation. Law students appear ready to push back when they feel a judicial guest list crosses a line, and university administrations may now face tougher questions before convocation day arrives.
The BCI has dropped proceedings against the 2026 NALSAR batch after hearing from senior advocates, bar members, law students and members of the public. But it has not fully closed the matter. The council says it is still waiting for an inquiry report from NALSAR’s vice-chancellor before deciding whether anything more needs to be done.
