Delhi High Court recognises Central Delhi Court Bar Association as the bar body for Rouse Avenue Court

The Delhi High Court recently accepted the Central Delhi Court Bar Association as the recognised bar body for the Rouse Avenue District Court in Delhi [Rouse Avenue Bar Association v The Bar Council of Delhi & Anr]..In doing so, the Court rejected the claim of the Rouse Avenue Bar Association, Delhi Rouse Avenue Court Bar Association and Rouse Avenue District Court Bar Association which had all staked claim to be declared as the recognised bar association for the Rouse Avenue Court..A Division Bench of Justices Sanjeev Sachdeva and Ravinder Dudeja said that merely because an association has been validly formed does not entail recognition as a court-annexed association or as a recognized association under the Advocates Welfare Fund Act.The held that the fundamental rights of all citizens to form an association as enshrined in Article 19(1)(c) of the Constitution of India does not include the right to be recognised as bar association by a State Bar Council or by the Court for the purposes of availing benefits that flow from such recognition. “Insofar as the fundamental right of all citizens to form an Association as enshrined in Article 19(1)(c) of the Constitution is concerned, there can be no dispute with the propositions that such Associations can be formed… However, merely because an Association has been validly formed does not ipso facto entail recognition as a Court annexed Association or as a recognized Association under the Advocates Welfare Fund Act,” the Court said..Four associations -- Rouse Avenue Bar Association, Delhi Rouse Avenue Court Bar Association, Rouse Avenue District Court Bar Association and Central Delhi Court Bar Association – had demanded that they be recognised as the bar association for the Rouse Avenue Court..The Court considered the case and noted that the balance was in favour of the Central Delhi Court Bar Association since it was constituted by the Bar Council of Delhi.It further passed a slew of directions for the constitution of an ad hoc committee for the Central Delhi Court Bar Association, the membership drive of the association and its functioning.The Bench added that the first election of the Central Delhi Court Bar Association will be held on October 19, 2024 along with all the other bar associations in Delhi as mandated by the Full Bench of the Delhi High Court..Advocates Munawwar Naseem, Siddharth, Indra Chand, Mukesh Kumar, Yajuvender Kumar and Manoj Kumar represented the petitioner Rouse Avenue Bar Association.Senior Advocate Ramesh Gupta along with advocates Ajay Kumar Agarwal, Rajesh Mishra, Ajayinder Sangwan, Naresh Gupta, OP Faizi, Pooja Bansal and Vijay Bishnoi appeared for the Bar Council of Delhi. .[Read Order]