The Supreme Court on Wednesday agreed to hear the matter concerning the filling of a vacancy in the Bar Council of Punjab and Haryana following the elevation of Minderjeet Yadav as a judge of the Punjab and Haryana High Court. The Petition was filed by Advocate Chetan Verma alleging that the vacancy could not have been treated as a casual vacancy because the newly elected Bar Council had not yet been constituted when Justice Minderjeet Yadav was elevated. The bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana has directed the matter to be listed before another bench.

The dispute concerns the election of Asmi, Justice Minderjeet Yadav’s 23-year-old daughter, who was declared elected unopposed to the Bar Council seat on October 27 after no other nomination was received. The petitioner, who challenged the process, has argued that he was the highest among the unsuccessful candidates in the Bar Council election and questioned the manner in which the vacancy was filled.

During the hearing, the petitioner argued that the vacancy could not legally be classified as a casual vacancy at the relevant time, as the newly elected Council had not yet been constituted. The counsel submitted that the question was not merely about who could fill the seat, but whether the rules governing casual vacancies could be invoked before the Council itself came into existence.

Counsel submitted that the rules governing casual vacancies allowed the elected Bar Council members to choose a candidate to fill the seat. He pointed out that the person elected was the 23-year-old daughter of the judge whose elevation had led to the vacancy, and claimed she had only two months of experience at the Bar. He further argued that he was the highest among the unsuccessful candidates and that thousands of electors had voted for him, raising concerns over the manner in which the vacancy was filled.