Kapil Sibal To Contest For Post Of President In Upcoming SCBA Election After Two Decades

Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal has announced his candidature for the position of President in the upcoming Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) elections.

The SCBA elections, scheduled for May 16 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., will determine the composition of the Executive Committee, including the President, Vice President, Secretary, and Treasurer. The last date for filing nomination is May 9, allowing candidates to formally declare their intentions to contest for various positions within the association.

As per SCBA's circular, nominations for the various posts will be filled by May 9, and a draft of the list of candidates will be displayed on the notice board and on SCBA's website on May 10. After that, on May 11, objections and withdrawals to the nominations will be submitted in the SCBA's office. Thereafter, on May 12, the Election Committee will consider objections to the nominations in the Milon Banerjee Conference Room.

Subsequently, the Final List of nominations will be displayed on the notice board of SCBA and on the website of SCBA on May 12. Thereafter, a debate of the candidates for the posts of President and Hony. Secretary shall be held at the Supreme Court lawns. On May 18, the vote counting will happen. 

Sibal's decision marks his return to the electoral arena of SCBA after over twenty years, having last served as President of SCBA during the tenure of 2001–02. Between 1995 and 2002, Sibal held the prestigious position of President of SCBA three times. 

Apart from Sibal, Senior Advocate Pradeep Rai and Senior Advocate Priya Hingorani are also contesting for the post of President. In 2022, Pradeep Rai was the Vice-President of the SCBA.  

Senior Advocate Adish Aggarwala currently holds the position of President, and Senior Advocate Pattjoshi Sukumar is serving as Vice President of SCBA. Aggarwala had won against Senior Advocate Dushyant Dave by a margin of 191 votes. Prior to that, Senior Advocate Vikas Singh was the President of the Association. 

About Kapil Sibal

Kapil Sibal served as the Additional Solicitor General (ASG) of India during 1989–90. In 1994 Sibal defended a Supreme Court Judge during impeachment proceedings in Parliament. In 2006, Sibal expanded his portfolio by assuming the roles of Minister for Science and Technology and Minister for Ocean Development, marking his entry into cabinet-level assignments.

In 2009, Sibal assumed the role of Minister for Human Resource Development. In 2011, Sibal took on additional responsibilities as Minister for Communications and Information Technology.

Click here to read the SCBA Notice of the detailed election programme