India, Feb. 20 -- The Supreme Court on Thursday asked the Bar Council of India (BCI) to reconsider its rule which restrains office-bearers of bar associations from contesting elections to the state bar councils.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justices Joymalya Bagchi and Vipul M Pancholi passed the order on a plea filed by lawyer Dhanya Kumar Jain and disposed of the petition.

The plea challenged the Bar Council of India Uniform Rules (and Mandatory Guidelines) for the Elections of Bar Councils, 2016.

The impugned provision states that an advocate, who is an office-bearer of any bar association except the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), shall not be eligible to contest the election of a state bar council.

It fur...