Bar Council Members to Elect 3 Office Bearers

Hyderabad:After a gap of nearly eight years, the long-awaited elections for the key posts of chairman and vice-chairman of the Bar Council of Telangana and its representative to the Bar Council of India (BCI) will be held on Sunday, setting the stage for a keen contest among the newly elected council members.

The elections assume significance as the three posts carry considerable importance for the legal fraternity in the state. The newly elected 23 members, along with two co-opted women members, will vote in the election, which will determine the leadership of the State Bar Council and its representation at the national-level Bar Council of India.

For the chairman's post, Ponnam Ashok Goud, Tangirala Hanumantha Reddy and Samula Ram Reddy are in the fray. Gokul Rama Rao, Chalakani Venkat Yadav and Zakir Hussain Javid M. are contesting for the vice-chairman post, while Akula Anantha Sen Reddy, G. Anil Kiran Kumar, D. Jagadeeshwar Rao, G. Kiran Kumar and Pasham Sujatha are competing for the BCI member post.

The deadline for withdrawal of nominations is 11 am on Sunday and polling for the three posts will commence at noon.

The elections came after the State Bar Council went through a prolonged electoral process. Elections to the 23-member council were held across Telangana on January 30, following which ballot boxes were brought to the Bar Council premises. Counting, which began on February 10, continued for a considerable period as the winners were determined through the preferential voting system involving first and second preferences.

A significant feature of this election was the implementation of the reservation of five seats for women advocates in accordance with Supreme Court directions. Bhanu Chandrika Ch., Sailaja Ch., Pripurna Shanigaram, Pasham Sujatha and Sunitha B. were elected, marking the first time that five women have entered the council under the reservation arrangement.

With 23 advocates elected through the ballot and two women members to be co-opted in accordance with the Supreme Court guidelines, the council will have 25 members for the purpose of electing its top office-bearers and Advocate General will also participate in voting. A formal Gazette notification is to follow the completion of the process.