The Supreme Court on Thursday allowed the counting of votes polled in the Bar Council of Delhi (BCD) elections to continue, but directed that the results shall not be declared without its permission.

The order was passed by a vacation Bench comprising Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant and Justice V Mohana while hearing a special leave petition filed by Advocate Rudra Vikram Singh.

“List on reopening [of court]. Meanwhile, it is directed that counting of votes shall continue but no result shall be declared till the permission of the court,” the Bench ordered.

The matter stems from allegations of irregularities in the BCD elections held earlier this year.

On May 18, the Supreme Court had directed a special Bench of the Delhi High Court to hear petitions challenging the conduct of the elections. After concerns were raised that allegedly tampered ballot papers were also being counted, the apex court stayed the counting process pending the High Court's decision.

Subsequently, on June 6, a Division Bench of the Delhi High Court comprising Justice Anil Kshetarpal and Justice Tejas Karia held that while the petitions alleging irregularities and seeking a re-poll were maintainable, the circumstances did not justify ordering fresh elections.

The High Court ruled that the entire election process could not be invalidated merely because some manipulated ballot papers had been identified during counting.

It further observed that a recount of first-preference votes was unnecessary since the alleged manipulation did not impact that stage of the process. Accordingly, the Court permitted counting to resume from the stage at which it had been halted.

To ensure transparency, the High Court ordered a series of safeguards, including secure lockable storage for ballot papers, installation of high-resolution cameras, continuous CCTV surveillance, live-streaming of the counting process and stricter verification measures for counting personnel.

The Court also directed that 27 allegedly manipulated ballot papers, along with other doubtful ballots, be examined separately by the Additional Solicitor General, whose decision would be final. It additionally ordered strict access controls and preservation of records while preserving the petitioners' right to challenge the election outcome through appropriate election petitions.

The Bar Council of Delhi elections were conducted in February under the supervision of retired Delhi High Court judge Justice Talwant Singh, who served as the returning officer.

However, the election process was marred by controversy from the outset. On February 22, 67 candidates, including two Senior Advocates, were placed under summary suspension for alleged large-scale violations of the Model Code of Conduct and the Election Rules, 2023.

In total, 79 lawyers were issued suspension notices, though 63 of those notices were revoked a day later after satisfactory explanations were submitted.

Subsequently, the Bar Council of India placed a lawyer under interim suspension for allegedly misbehaving with Justice Talwant Singh. The lawyer was accused of attempting to manhandle the retired judge, inciting a crowd of lawyers and raising slogans against the election machinery while Justice Singh was inspecting an area following complaints of Model Code violations.

The Bar Council of Delhi also suspended former Delhi High Court Bar Association President Rajiv Khosla and nine other advocates from its rolls over allegations that they had manhandled, pushed and abused officials involved in conducting the elections.

On May 2, Justice Talwant Singh also sent a confidential letter to the Supreme Court regarding the conduct of the Bar elections, while multiple petitions were filed alleging irregularities in the electoral process.