A lawyer has approached the Supreme Court seeking direction to the Bar Council of India (BCI) to release the results of the 17th All India Bar Examination (AIBE), which was held in February 2023.
The petitioner, advocate Mani Munjal, claims that the AIBE results have not been declared despite a two-and-a-half-month lapse, threatening her right to practice as an advocate and affecting her livelihood.
“The right to livelihood is one of the facets of right to life guaranteed under article 21 of the Constitution of India. Life of the person would be miserable if he is unable to earn for his livelihood and therefore the right to earn by engaging in the profession in exercise of the right to practice a profession as enshrined in 19(1)(g) cannot be curtailed or restricted unreasonably,” the plea reads.
It is stated that advocates enrolled with a State Bar Council cannot practice unless they pass the BCI examination.
The exam was held on February 5, and the BCI released the answer key on the AIBE website on that date. Because of the discrepancies in the answer key, the BCI invited candidates to file objections on Delay In AIBE ResuFebruary 13. The final answer key was released on April 20 after a two-month delay.
According to the petition, the BCI’s delay in declaring the results of the 17th AIBE is unreasonable, an abuse of its powers, and there is no justification for such a delay.
Because of the embargo imposed by the Bar Council Rules 2010, the petitioner claims that she is unable to file Vakalatnama in any case and cannot be hired as counsel by a litigant unless she clears the AIBE.
She has thus prayed for a directive to BCI to announce the results as soon as possible.
