The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) is set for a significant electoral reforms with former Supreme Justice L Nageswara Rao leading a committee to recommend changes to the association’s bye-laws governing elections. .In a move to democratize the reform process, the committee has asked SCBA members to submit their suggestions via email (scba.committee.2025@gmail.com) by March 20.Among the key issues under review are who can vote, who can contest, the tenure and size of the executive committee of SCBA, and potential grounds for disqualification such as inducement for votes. Suggestions have been solicited from the members of the SCBA on the following issues: 1. Eligibility conditions for contesting elections to the Executive Committee;2. Eligibility conditions for voting in elections to the Executive Committee;3. Tenure of the Executive Committee;4. Strength of the Executive Committee;5. Disqualification of candidates (including, for providing inducements for votes);6. Any other issue concerning the election of members to the Executive Committee..Members must limit their submissions to two pages and include their SCBA membership and mobile number for verification..The reform process has been initiated pursuant to a Supreme Court directive of February 25 wherein a bench comprising Justice Surya Kant and Justice NK Singh tasked a committee headed by Justice Rao to lead the review..The top court had recently mandated one-third women’s reservation in SCBA posts —a move seen as a step toward greater inclusivity.Noting that SCBA’s norms and election rules have remained unchanged for decades, the Court emphasized the need for timely reforms to ensure a more effective electoral process.
