The Supreme Court has directed the Bar Council of India (BCI) and the Consortium of National Law Universities to revise and formally notify their policies governing the provision of scribes for specially-abled candidates appearing in the All India Bar Examination (AIBE) and the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT).
A Bench comprising the Chief Justice of India, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice N.V. Anjaria passed the directions while hearing a writ petition seeking clarity and appropriate accommodations for candidates with disabilities. During the hearing, counsel for the petitioners placed additional suggestions before the Court, aligned with the guidelines issued by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, to ensure that specially-abled candidates can effectively participate in these examinations.
The Court noted the submission that the existing policy circulars relating to scribes required reconsideration. It was pointed out that candidates with visual impairment appearing for the AIBE are entitled to the assistance of a scribe who is an undergraduate and not pursuing law or any other humanities course. This, it was argued, necessarily implies that there should be no bar on engaging a scribe who possesses qualifications beyond the 10+2 level.
Accepting the submissions, the Bench observed that there was no reason to take a view different from the suggestions advanced on behalf of the petitioners. Accordingly, the Court directed the BCI and the Consortium of NLUs to implement the suggested modifications at the earliest and to notify them formally well before the next examination cycle.
The Court further directed that a compliance affidavit be filed within two weeks and listed the matter for compliance on March 20, 2026.
Appearances:
For Petitioner(s) : Mr. Amar Jain, Adv.; Ms. Sanchita Ain, AOR
For Respondent(s) : Mrs. Archana Pathak Dave, A.S.G.; Mr. Ashok Panigrahi, Adv.; Mr. Madhav Sinhal, Adv.; Mrs. Swati Ghildiyal, Adv.; Ms. Deeksha, Adv.; Mr. Pratyush; Srivastava, Adv.; Mr. Manish, Adv.; Dr. N. Visakamurthy, AOR; Mr. Akshay Amritanshu, AOR; Ms. Anjul Dwivedi, Adv.; Mr. Abhay Nair, Adv.; Mr. Sarthak Srivastava, Adv.; Mr. Mayur Goyal, Adv.; Ms. Pritha Srikumar Iyer, AOR; Mr. Arun Sri Kumar, Adv.; Mr. Shubhansh Thakur, Adv.
