Supreme Court Dismisses Plea Against ₹3,500 Fee For All India Bar Examination
The Supreme Court on September 2 dismissed a petition challenging the Rs. 3,500 fee and other incidental charges levied by the Bar Council of India (BCI) for the All-India Bar Examination (AIBE).A bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Sandeep Mehta agreed with BCI's contention that the judgment in Gaurav Kumar v. Union of India, which held that Bar Councils cannot charge more than...
The Supreme Court on September 2 dismissed a petition challenging the Rs. 3,500 fee and other incidental charges levied by the Bar Council of India (BCI) for the All-India Bar Examination (AIBE).
A bench of Justice JB Pardiwala and Justice Sandeep Mehta agreed with BCI's contention that the judgment in Gaurav Kumar v. Union of India, which held that Bar Councils cannot charge more than the statutorily prescribed Rs. 750 for enrolment, does not apply to the AIBE fees.
During the hearing, Justice Pardiwala asked the petitioner why he was not following the Gaurav Kumar judgment.
Senior Advocate S. Gurukrishna Kumar, appearing for the BCI, submitted that the judgment pertained to enrolment fees under Section 24 of the Advocates Act, 1961, and not to the AIBE. He added that the Council incurred various costs in conducting the examination.
The Court agreed with this reasoning and dismissed the plea.
In a lighter vein, the bench told the petition-in-person, “Mr. Gandhi, you pay the Rs. 3500 now. As a lawyer you will earn Rs. 3500000…000…”
The petition was filed by an advocate Sanyam Gandhi, appearing in person, who argued that the imposition of Rs. 3,500 and additional charges was contrary to the Gaurav Kumar judgment.
He submitted that the judgment had fixed the enrolment fee at Rs. 750 for general category advocates and Rs. 125 for SC/ST advocates and contended that the AIBE fee violated Articles 14 and 19(1)(g) of the Constitution and Section 24(1)(f) of the Advocates Act.
Earlier, on February 24, the Court had directed the petitioner to first approach the BCI with a representation, granting liberty to move the Court again if no response was received within a reasonable time or if the response was negative.
Case no. – W.P.(C) No. 28/2025
Case Title – Sanyam Gandhi v. Union of India and Anr.