New Delhi: Senior advocate Pradeep Rai has been elected as the new president of the Supreme Court Bar Association (SCBA), securing a decisive victory over senior counsel Anupam Lal Das in the election held on Tuesday. As reported by various sources, Rai garnered 822 votes against Das’s 451 votes to claim the top post in the lawyers’ body. Rai succeeds senior advocate Vikas Singh, who previously held the presidential position over multiple terms.
The election saw a competitive multi-cornered contest for the presidency among prominent legal practitioners. Senior advocate Adish Agarwalla secured 412 votes, followed by Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson and senior advocate Gaurav Bhatia with 370 votes. Other contenders included senior advocate Sukumar Pattjoshi, who received 269 votes, former Manipur High Court Chief Justice Siddharth Mridul with 217 votes, and senior advocate Mahalakshmi Pavani with 128 votes.
In the executive council elections, senior advocate Rahul Kaushik was elected vice-president, while advocate Pragya Baghel secured the post of secretary. Advocate Meenesh Dubey was chosen as the joint secretary, and advocate Reepak Kansal was elected treasurer of the association. Chief Justice of India Surya Kant formally extended his best wishes to the incoming SCBA leadership team on Wednesday, during which Rai affirmed the Bar’s commitment to cooperate closely with the Bench to ensure the smooth administration of justice.
