Lucknow, Aug 14 The Allahabad High Court on Friday directed the Oudh Bar Association (OBA) here to provide 30 per cent reservation to women advocates in its Executive Council, holding that the Supreme Court's directions on representation of women in bar associations are binding and must be implemented in letter and spirit.
A Lucknow bench of justices Rajan Roy and Manjive Shukla passed the order while disposing of two PILs seeking reservation for women lawyers in the OBA.
The court noted that the OBA Executive Council has 22 posts and that at least seven posts would have to be reserved for women to ensure 30 per cent representation.
In detailed directions, the bench specified the posts to be reserved and the rotation schedule.
For the 2026 elections, two of the six junior executive posts, two of the six senior executive posts and one of the three joint secretary posts will be reserved for women.
The treasurer's post, already reserved for women in 2026, will again be reserved in 2029 and thereafter every three years.
The bench directed that the senior vice president's post, for which 20 years of regular and active practice is required, be reserved for women in 2026, followed by 2029 and 2032.
The president's post will be reserved for women in 2028, and subsequently in 2031 and 2034. Reservation for the remaining vice president posts was also prescribed through rotation.
The court said that if a post reserved for a woman could not be filled due to the absence of an eligible woman candidate, the senior judge of the Lucknow bench would nominate a woman advocate to the post.
The directions will form part of the existing bye-laws of the OBA.
The bench also introduced a transparency requirement for the forthcoming elections, directing candidates to disclose in their nomination forms details of any FIR or criminal case lodged against them, along with its status and outcome.
Any concealment or misrepresentation could lead to cancellation of the candidature or election, the court said.
