The Delhi Bar Council (DBC) will elect a new chairman and vice chairman on 30 July, as RS Chauhan – the chairman elected in January – resigned on 28 June, on the brink of a no confidence motion being passed against him by 16 DBC members.

Former DBC vice chairman Vijay Sondhi had opposed Chauhan continuing in office, claiming that his term had expired on 22 March. Chauhan, who in May had sent a letter purportedly suspending Sondhi from the council, said: “My term had already expired therefore I submitted my resignation.” He has now withdrawn the suspension letter he had addressed to Sondhi.

Chauhan’s resignation was accepted by the council’s members on 3 July, two days after they passed the no confidence motion which Chauhan had “rejected” calling it a “hate campaign” against him.

On 3 July, outgoing DBC secretary Murari Tiwari also handed over the secretarial office to Sondhi, after having disputed since 13 May that Sondhi had replaced him on that date through a circular signed by 17 DBC members.

Chauhan was one among many DBC members, including senior advocate Adish Aggarwala, who had held the post of chairman at the council within the duration of the official term of one chairman. This was apparently the result of a pre-decided rotation of chairmen, in which various DBC members made an informal arrangement to vote each other into the chairman’s office in succession, provided no one held the post for more than three months.