The Supreme Court on Thursday reserved one-third of the seats in the executive committee of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) for women. Accordingly, a minimum of 3 out of 9 positions in the Executive Committee and 2 of 6 Senior Executive Member posts will be reserved for women, a bench of Justices Surya Kant and K V Viswanathan directed. It further said “at least one post of the Office-Bearer shall be reserved for women candidates exclusively by turn and on rotation basis” and “in the ensuing election for 2024-2025, the post of Treasurer of the Executive Committee is reserved for women”. The bench clarified that the “reservation is only to guarantee a minimum and women members of the SCBA, subject to their eligibility, shall be entitled to contest the election for all the posts in the Executive Committee”. The court fixed this year’s election on May 16 and the counting on May 18, when the term of the current office-bearers will expire. The bench directed that the election shall be held on the basis of the voters' list as was finalised in the election for the year 2023. It added that all those members who became eligible between March 1, 2023 and February 29, 2024 will also be included in the voters' list. The order came on an application filed by advocate Kumud Lata Das seeking reforms in the bar body’s electoral process and holding of elections. The bench noted that the eight resolutions introduced in the special meeting of the SCBA general body held on April 30 had failed to muster the requisite two-thirds majority. These included a proposal to recall the resolution that no member of the Bar shall be eligible to hold any one post for more than four years in his/her life time, revision of deposit fee and eligibility for candidates to contest for various posts in SCBA Executive Committee, increasing the tenure of the Executive Committee from one to two years and ensuring reservation for women in SCBA Executive Committee. Taking note, the bench said, “In this regard, we have heard various senior members/members of the Bar. We are of the view that the SCBA is a premier institution and is an integral part of the highest judicial forum of the country. The norms, eligibility conditions, membership, membership fee structure etc., cannot remain static for decades and timely reforms to meet with the challenges that may confront the institution from time to time are required to be carried out.” It added that “such reforms need to be brought after due consideration of the suggestions from the members of the Bar.
