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Kapil Sibal entry triggers debate: Should a politician contest and hold SCBA presidentship?

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The Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA) election campaigning has hotted up with Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal entering the fray in the last moment for the President’s post. Sibal’s main contender is Pradeep Rai, SCBA Vice-President for two terms and an active Senior Advocate known for his concern for members’ cause.  Sibal, a Rajya Sabha MP from the Samajwadi Party, had filed his nomination on May 9, a mere seven days before the elections on May 16. The nomination of Sibal has triggered a debate whether a politician should contest and hold the presidentship of the SCBA. 

Justice PV Shetty, former Lokayukta, Karnataka, told India Legal: “The President-elect should not make use of the position as the office-bearer of the association to improve his position. His political will should not find place in the association’s acitivity. It should be kept separate. One is elected as the President of the SCBA and one should not use the position to improve his political status.”

Justice PV Shetty

The SCBA’s mandate is to facilitate a constructive dialogue between the Bar and the Bench, nurturing an environment conducive to the administration of justice. However, partisanship can effectively mar any such interactive effort. A politician brings with himself a baggage of not only entrenched ideologies but vested interests too. He juggles two careers and two ambitions at a time. It opens up the SCBA or any organisation to become a tool of partisan motives, turning it into an impediment rather than a facilitator of legal discourse. This has potential to erode public trust in the judiciary and compromise the sanctity of law administration and justice.

Justice Sridhar Rao, former acting chief justice of Gauhati High Court, told India Legal: “Allowing a Member of Parliament or Member of Legislative Assembly to hold senior posts in the SCBA is not tenable. The association will then have the character of a political party. It will also affect the unity of the Bar.”

Justice Sridhar Rao

Accessibility is another crucial factor that underscores the unsuitability of politicians for leadership roles within professional bodies such as the SCBA. A politician’s hectic schedule, divided between political engagements and legal pursuits, leaves little room for meaningful engagement with the grassroots members of the Bar. A leader who is inaccessible to the common man cannot truly understand their concerns and represent their interests effectively.

Prof Suryaprakash, Vice Chancellor, National Law Institute University (NLIU), Bhopal, told India Legal:  “Article 19 (i) (c) provides for freedom to form associations and unions. The SCBA has been formed not for political aggrandisement but for protection and promotion of advocates interests and rights; and to facilitate administration of justice. SCBA assists the highest court in justice delivery system, and is a part of justice delivery system. The Bar and the Bench go hand in hand. No politician should head the SCBA as it would make all political parties vie with each other to set up their own candidate and would thus make the association a political arena. Bar and Bench go hand in hand. No politician should head the SCBA. It should be headed only by legal professionals.”

Prof.(Dr.) S. Surya Prakash

Sibal was previously elected SCBA President three times, his last tenure was twenty-three years ago in 2001. Before that, he was President during the 1995-96 and 1997-98 terms. Kapil Sibal also served as the Additional Solicitor General of India during 1989–90.

Senior Advocate Pradeep Rai has over 25 years of standing at the Bar in the Supreme Court of India, various High Courts, Commissions, Regulatory Bodies and Tribunals. During his two terms as Vice-President, SCBA, Rai has taken quite a few initiative to promote the interests of the SCBA members which includes mediation programs, members housing , health benefits for members, chamber allotment and cultural programs.

Incumbent SCBA President Senior Advocate Adish Aggarwala is standing for re-election. Apart from Sibal, Rai and Aggarwala, Senior Advocate Priya Hingorani, Advocates Neeraj Srivastava and Tripurari Ray are also in the fray.

The SCBA elections will be held on May 16 . Voters will choose the President, Vice-President, Secretary, and Treasurer. A debate will be held in the Supreme Court lawns between the candidates for the posts of President and Hony Secretary on May 15. Votes will be counted on May 18, Saturday.

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Reliance introduces Jio AI-Cloud Welcome offer with 100 GB free storage, to be launched in Diwali

Mukesh Ambani further mentioned that they plan to establish gigawatt scale AI-ready data centres in Jamnagar, powered entirely by Reliance’s green energy, reflecting on their commitment to sustainability and a greener future.

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Reliance introduces Jio AI-Cloud Welcome offer with 100 GB free storage, to be launched in Diwali

Reliance on Thursday introduced ‘Jio AI-Cloud Welcome offer’ at Reliance AGM. Mukesh Ambani said that the Jio users will get up to 100 GB of free cloud storage, to securely store and access all their photos, videos, documents, all other digital content, and data. He added that the company plans to launch the Jio AI-Cloud Welcome offer starting Diwali this year, bringing a powerful and affordable solution where cloud data storage and data-powered AI services are available to everyone everywhere.

While reflecting on the power of Artificial Intelligence (AI), he said that the true power of AI lies in making it accessible to everyone, everywhere. He added that with Jio’s AI Everywhere For Everyone vision, they are committed to democratising AI, offering powerful AI models and services to everyone in India at the most affordable prices. 

To achieve this, they are laying the groundwork for a truly national AI infrastructure, he continued. Mukesh Ambani further mentioned that they plan to establish gigawatt scale AI-ready data centres in Jamnagar, powered entirely by Reliance’s green energy, reflecting on their commitment to sustainability and a greener future.

Elaborating on what is new in JioTV+, Akash Ambani said that JioTV+ brings all entertainment—live TV, on-demand shows, and apps—together in one easy-to-use platform. He said that with JioTV+, one can get access to over 860 live TV channels, with all leading channels in stunning High Definition, plus the best content from apps like Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and Hotstar—all in one place, adding that they have optimized JioTV+ for a super-fast channel switching experience.

Akash Ambani also unveiled the new Jio Phonecall AI, which allows users to use AI with every phone call. Jio Phonecall AI can record and store any call in Jio Cloud and automatically transcribe it, which means automatically convert it from voice to text. Furthermore, it can also summarize the call, and even translate it into another language. This allows anyone to easily capture and access important voice conversations, making them searchable, shareable, and understandable across languages, all with just a few clicks.

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Mamata Banerjee denies threatening doctors, says malicious disinformation campaign

Responding to BJP’s 12-hour long Bengal Bandh call, Mamata Banerjee claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was using his party to cause a fire in Bengal over the Kolkata doctor rape and murder.

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Mamata Banerjee denies threatening doctors, says malicious disinformation campaign

West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee denied claims accusing her of threatening doctors, and alleged that a malicious disinformation campaign was unleashed against her speech yesterday. 

The Chief Minister asserted that she did not utter a single word against medical students or their movement against the rape and murder of a doctor in Kolkata’s RG Kar Medical College and Hospital.

Taking to social media platform X, Mamata Banerjee said that she detects a malicious disinformation campaign in some print, electronic and digital media which has been unleashed with reference to a speech that she made in the party’s students’ programme yesterday.

She clarified that she did not utter a single word against the medical students or their movements. Terming the doctors movement genuine, she expressed her support to them. She also maintained that she never threatened the doctors, as some people are accusing, adding that the allegation is completely false.

However, she mentioned that she spoke against the BJP in her speech because they had been threatening democracy in West Bengal with the support of the Centre, and is trying to create anarchy. Mamata Banerjee in her speech on Wednesday said that she had been very patient during the entire episode, and urged the protesting doctors to return to work. Notably, the BJP claimed that she had threatened the doctors.

In the social media post, CM Banerjee also clarified that the phrase “phonsh kara” is a quote from Sri Ramakrishna Paramahansa Deva. She explained that the legendary saint had said that occasionally there is a need to raise one’s voice. She continued that when there are crimes and criminal offences, voices of protest have to be raised, and her speech on that point was a direct allusion to the great Ramakrishna’s saying.

Responding to BJP’s 12-hour long ‘Bengal Bandh’ call, Mamata Banerjee claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was using his party to cause a fire in Bengal over the Kolkata doctor rape and murder.

She asserted that some people think this is Bangladesh, but they should remember Bangladesh is a separate country, and India is a separate country. Mentioning that PM Modi is using his party to cause fire in Kolkata, the Chief Minister said that if they burn Bengal, Assam, North-East, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Odisha, then Delhi too shall burn, and they will topple his chair.

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Gujarat floods: Congress chief Kharge, Rahul Gandhi urge government to provide all possible assistance

“Our thoughts are with the affected people, who are in need of urgent food and medical assistance”, he said.

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Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi on Wednesday urged the government to provide all the possible assistance to people affected due to floods in Gujarat.

Expressing his concern over flood situation in Gujarat, Kharge said the flood situation in the state is extremely worrying as several people have lost their lives and are missing.

The Congress chief extended his condolences to the families of those who have lost their loved ones. “Our thoughts are with the affected people, who are in need of urgent food and medical assistance”, he said.

Kharge requested the Central government to ensure more NDRF & SDRF teams. He said, “We are proud of our Armed Forces and Coast Guard, who are undertaking rescue efforts”. Congress leaders and workers must coordinate all possible relief efforts, in this hour of tragedy, he said in a post on X.

Rain-related incidents claimed nine more lives in Gujarat, taking the death toll to 16 in two days, while another 8,500 people were relocated and rescued from flood-affected areas with rains continuing to lash some parts of the state for the fourth consecutive day on Wednesday, officials said.

Lok Sabha LoP Gandhi said that the flood situation in Gujarat is getting more severe day by day. He also expressed his condolences to the families who have lost their loved ones and whose property has been damaged in this disaster.

He wished for the speedy recovery of those who were injured due to natural calamity. An appeal is made to all Congress workers to provide all possible help to the affected people and the administration in relief and rescue work, he said in a post on X.

The government is expected to take all necessary steps to reduce the impact of this disaster so that the affected people can move towards reconstruction and rehabilitation as soon as possible, the Raebareli MP added.

Authorities are carrying out relief and rescue operations involving the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), its state counterpart SDRF, the Army, the Indian Air Force and the Indian Coast Guard, while Prime Minister Narendra Modi called up Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel to take stock of the situation and to ensure Centre’s support in the crisis.

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