HER Bill will not curtail powers of BCI: Kapil Sibal

The Human Resource Development Minister said he was not touching the powers of the BCI and the right to give degrees to practicing lawyers will remain with it.

Sibal was speaking at a function here organised by the BCI to felicitate him and Union Minister of Law and Justice Salman Khurshid.

"Education in law does not deal only with practicing as a lawyer. How can I do anything with the rights of Bar as I am also a member of the Bar. The BCI's work is to prepare young lawyers who want to practice LLB in accordance with the law and nobody is here to touch that.

"Whatever rights and obligations you have under the Advocates Act and the Accountants Act related to practicing lawyers will remain with you and nobody is going to touch them," he said.

The bill has been facing strong opposition from the apex lawyers' body which has alleged that it is aimed at usurping the BCI's control over legal education.

Sibal that there are other steps needed to be taken in the legal field, adding that several ministers in the government are from legal fraternity and this is a "great opportunity" to do something for the profession.

"But nobody comes to us with their demands. There are so many issues including, housing and insurance facility, for lawyers but nobody is ready to change here," he said.

Khurshid, speaking at the programme, said that it was a mistaken view of lawyers that Sibal wanted to cause any harm to them and he was just testing them and their response to the bill. MORE