Exclusive: Senior advocate Dr Adish C Aggarwala was voted in as chairman of the Bar Council of Delhi (DBC), defeating Delhi Bar Association president Rajiv Khosla by 15 out of 25 votes at the Council’s 2012-2014 term committee election held yesterday, with Khosla alleging cartel voting.

Aggarwala, who is also the All India Bar Association chairman, assumes the chair vacated by temporarily officiating chairman OP Faizi.

He said, “My agenda [as chairman] is that lawyers should be given due respect and judges and the government should recognise the role played by the legal fraternity.”

He added that he would organise an international seminar on “access to justice”, with participating judges, bar leaders, and law teachers from various countries, in the first week of May.

Aggarwala told Legally India that DBC elections this time had adopted the secret ballot system of voting in spirit at the lawyers’ chambers in the High Court of Delhi. Having a true secret ballot was a first ever, he said, after his opponent Khosla requested the procedure in writing.

Khosla told Legally India that since the last vote, elections for the DBC chairmanship had become exposed to rule-bending agreements that orchestrate majorities in the polls.

He claimed that Aggarwala’s election victory was a result of a pre-decided rotation in the post of chairman among the majority of members who voted for Aggarwala. Aggarwala had already handed in his resignation from the chair one month in advance, he added.

He said: “I was not given the post of chairman because they had asked me too if I will officiate for a maximum period of three months… I was given the offer as well, but I didn’t agree. I said if I am there I will be there for at least one year which I require to work for the bar. From one year [I] came down to nine months, but not below that.”

“Everyone wants to be the chairman,” said Khosla. “The group who has got 13 votes has majority, the group with 10 also has majority. Amongst the people who constitute majority, everyone wants their name written on the board, so there is an agreement between them and a resignation takes place in advance.

“Aggarwala was originally in the minority group, and from there also people wanted to come to our group. But there were some fence-sitters who wanted to be on the committees, so there was a trading of votes.”

“It has been a group understanding, yes there’s always an understanding,” commented Aggarwala on the voting process, but he denied that he had already resigned. His term as chair would depend on his time schedule, he said, since he was associated with many other positions, but any potential successors as chairman would also be subject to a fresh vote.

The Maharahstra and Goa Bar Council is understood to have entered into a rotating chairmanship power-sharing agreement, which are common in many state bar councils.

Committees

OP Faizi won the Delhi bar council’s deputation to the Bar Council of India (BCI); Delhi’s current BCI member was Rajinder Singh Rana who did not win any committee seats this time.

The disciplinary committees now consists of Murari Tiwari, Jaibir Singh Nagar, Rs. Goswami, Rakesh Sherawat, OP Faizi and KK Manan.

Goswami and Sherawat also made it onto the enrolment committee, alongside Aman Sareen who does not hold any other posts this time. Sareen was embroiled in controversy after inheriting his late father KK Sareen’s DBC seat, which was challenged in a writ but ultimately upheld by the Delhi High Court.

Jagdev will head up the advocates welfare committee and is also on the executive committee and in three other posts.

Faizi, Jagdev and Goswami occupy five committee positions each – more than any other member this time.

Luthra & Luthra senior partner Vijay Sondhi won the vice-chairmanship without contest after his three opponents - Sherawat, Amit Sharma and Puneet Mittal dropped out.

Outgoing vice-chairman Jaibir Singh Nagar is represented on four committees.

List of Delhi bar council office bearers after 21 March 2012 elections

Chairman	:		Sh Dr Adish C Aggarwala (Sr Advocate)
Vice-Chairman	:		Sh Vijay K Sondhi
			(Elected unopposed on 16.03.2012)
Library Committee	:	1	Ms Rana Parween Siddiqui
		2	Sh Rs. Goswami
		3	Sh Rakesh Sherawat
Rules Committee	:	1	Sh OP. Faizi
		2	Sh KK Manan
		3	Sh Rs. Goswami
		4	Sh Surya Prakash Khatri
		5	Sh Jaibir Singh Nagar
Enrolment Committee	:	1	Sh Rs. Goswami
		2	Sh Rakesh Sherawat
		3	Sh Aman Sareen
Executive Committee	:	1	Sh KK Manan
		2	Ms Rana Parween Siddiqui
		3	Sh Jagdev
		4	Sh Surya Prakash Khatri
		5	Sh Jaibir Singh Nagar
Indigent & Disabled	:	1	Sh OP Faizi
Lawyers Committee		2	Ms Rana Parween Siddiqui
		3	Sh Jagdev
		4	Sh R.S. Goswami
		5	Sh Rakesh Sherawat

Disciplinary Committee-I	:	1	Sh Murari Tiwari
		2	Sh Jaibir Singh Nagar
Disciplinary Committee-II	:	1	Sh Rs. Goswami
		2	Sh Rakesh Sherawat
Disciplinary Committee-III	:	1	Sh OP Faizi
		2	Sh KK Manan
Bar Council of India	:	1	Sh OP Faizi
Advocates Welfare Committee for the State		2	Sh Jagdev
Election Committee	:	1	Sh Ramesh Gupta (Sr Advocate)
		2	Sh KK Manan
		3	Sh Jagdev
		4	Sh Surya Prakash Khatri
		5	Sh Jaibir Singh Nagar
Education & Examination	:	1	Sh OP Faizi
Committee		2	Ms Rana Parween Siddiqui
		3	Sh Jagdev
		4	Sh Surya Prakash Khatri
		5	Sh Murari Tiwari