Rajahmundry: Erstwhile AP Bar Council will be bifurcated to set up a separate Telangana Bar Council as per the norms of AP Reorganisation Act, 2014, probably in the first week of November.
Even as erstwhile state of Andhra Pradesh was bifurcated in June 2014 to form the new Telangana state, the AP Bar Council remained undivided since then. However, now, efforts are on to divide the AP Bar Council into two Councils with one remaining in AP while the other will be in Telangana.
Special committees were formed with a few members of the Bar Council of India and also AP Bar Council and they visited Hyderabad and took stock of the developments for the bifurcation of erstwhile AP Bar Council recently.
Accordingly, Bar Council of India has constituted an Election Tribunal and it has to accept the proposed bifurcation of erstwhile AP Bar Council into two Bar Councils for both AP and Telangana.
Subsequently, the respective state governments will have to issue a gazette notification declaring the constitution of two Bar Councils for both the states.
As per the norms of AP Reorganisation Act, 2014, the assets and employees of erstwhile AP Bar Council will be divided between AP and TS on 52:48 ratio.
On the other hand, election was conducted to elect the members of the Bar Councils for both AP and TS nearly three months ago and each Bar Council has got as many as 25 members elected. Once the two Bar Councils are set up for both the states, the elected members will assume charge and they will continue in the office for a period of five years from the date of assumption of office.
State Bar Councils are the statutory bodies that regulate the professional conduct of advocates, take up registration of advocates to practice law and ensure measures for implementation of several welfare schemes for the benefit of advocates.
AP Bar Council member-elect Mupppala Subba Rao said: “We are expecting the division of erstwhile AP Bar Council to set up one for AP and another for TS shortly. Special committees of the Bar Council of India and erstwhile AP Bar Council are closely monitoring the exercise to split as per norms.”
