Rajanna R elected chairperson of Karnataka State Bar Council; Shivamurthy is new vice chairperson

Advocate Rajanna R has been elected as the new chairperson of the Karnataka State Bar Council (KSBC) while advocate Shivamurthy has been elected as vice-chairperson.

Advocate Dhananjaya CM was elected as the Karnataka State Bar Council's nominee to the Bar Council of India (BCI).

They will hold office for two years.

The elections to the three posts were held on Wednesday, with the Advocate General of Karnataka, 23 elected members of the KSBC and two co-opted women members participating in the voting.

Rajanna secured 15 votes, defeating advocate N Devaraj who secured 11 votes.

Shivamurthy secured 17 votes, defeating advocate Shylaja K who polled 9 votes.

In the election for the BCI nominee, Dhananjaya CM secured 15 votes, defeating advocate Shiva Kumar N who secured 11 votes.

The KSBC elections were held on March 11 for the constitution of the 23-member council.

As many as 149 candidates had contested the election. A notable feature of the 2026 KSBC election was the election of five women advocates to the 23-member council, marking the first time that five women members have been elected to the State Bar Council.

The KSBC election had been pending for several years, with the previous election having been held about eight years earlier. The delay was connected with issues concerning the Certificate of Practice (CoP) and the process for determining eligible voters.

The Supreme Court had directed that the KSBC election be conducted before March 15

The elections were then held on March 11.

Following the constitution of the new council, the election of its chairperson, vice-chairperson and BCI nominee was conducted by the members of the council on Wednesday (September 30).