Denial of enrollment based solely on the registration of an FIR for criminal offences is in direct conflict with the right to practice a profession or trade guaranteed by Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India.

JUDGMENT :

1. Rule. Learned advocate Mr.Mehta waives service of notice of rule for the respondent.

2. The brief facts of the case are as under :-

2.1. The petitioner had completed his Bachelor’s degree in law from Gujarat University in the month of September, 2020. After completing his Bachelors’ degree in law, he was desireous of enrolling himself as an advocate with the Bar Council of Gujarat and he had submitted the enrollment form along with the necessary fees to the office of the Bar Council of Gujarat on 10.11.2020.

2.2. It is the grievance of the petitioner that in spite of the fact that the application of the petitioner for enrollment is pending with the respondent authority since long, the same is not being put up before the Enrollment Committee meeting for being provisionally enrolled as an Advocate. The writ petition was filed at a stage when the petitioner was to appear in the All India Bar Examination-2016 (AIBE), for which the process of registration was going on and the date for registration was extended till 14.08.2021. The petitioner has subsequently cleared the same.

2.3. As the petitioner’s enrollment was being unduly delayed, the petitioner had personally approached the office of the Bar Council of Gujarat and had made oral representations for considering his case for enrollment. However, the petitioner was orally informed that, due to pendency of one criminal case against him, his application for enrollment is not being considered by the Bar Council.

2.4. Against the petitioner one criminal case for commission of the alleged offence punishable under Sections 376(2), 377, 494, 507 and 114 of the IPC is pending. As mentioned in the writ petition the details of the said criminal case was duly disclosed by the petitioner in the application form for enrollment. In the said FIR, the case of the prosecution briefly stated is that, while the petitioner was pursuing his studies in LL.B, he came into contact with Krina, daughter of Jivanji Chaganji Thakor, aged about 25 years, who was also studying with the petitioner. With the passage of time, the petitioner and the said Krina Thakor decided to marry and accordingly, they got married on 07.02.2019 in presence of their friends and well wishers and thereafter they started to live together as husband and wife. It is stated that after living together for few weeks they came to realize that they were not compatible with each other and therefore, with mutual consent, they both decided to part ways. It is the case of the petitioner that thereafter, with a view to pressurize the petitioner and his family members, on 28.03.2019 she filed an absolutely false and frivolous FIR alleging that the petitioner has committed rape upon her.

3. Learned advocate Mr.Jebaliaya appearing for the petitioner has placed reliance on Section 24A of the Advocates Act, 1961 and has submitted that the aforesaid provisions of section do not anywhere provide that on registration of the FIR, the advocate cannot be enrolled in the Bar Council of Gujarat. He has submitted that the action of the respondent is in violation of Article 19(1)(g) of the Constitution of India. Finally, it is submitted that pursuant to the order dated 22.09.2021 passed by this Court, the petitioner had also appeared in AIBE, which was scheduled on 25.09.2021 and he has also passed the same. Thus, he has submitted that the writ petition may be allowed and the respondent may be directed to enroll the petitioner as an advocate on the rolls of the Bar Council of Gujarat.

4. In response to the aforesaid submissions, learned advocate Mr.Mehta has submitted that since the petitioner is embroiled in a very serious offence punishable under Sections 376(2), 377, 494, 507 and 114 of the IPC, the petitioner cannot be allowed to be enrolled as an advocate in the Bar Council of Gujarat. He has submitted that such a conduct of the petitioner cannot be tolerated in any manner and if a person having criminal background is allowed to be enrolled as a