The Bar Council of India on Thursday modified its earlier order within an hour of its release, which barred the enrolment of 2026 graduates of NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad, taking a U-turn and saying all students from the graduating batch will now be entitled to enrol with the State Bar Council of their choice.The decision came within an hour after the BCI had directed that students graduating from NALSAR in 2026 would not be enrolled with State Bar Councils until further orders. The first order followed a controversy over the proposed invitation of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant to the university’s convocation, where students of NALSAR allegedly opposed CJI Surya Kant’s name as chief guest.In its latest order dated August 13, the BCI said its members had thoroughly discussed the earlier letter issued by its chairman and were of the unanimous view, based on the latest report, that the “vast majority” of NALSAR’s 2026 pass-out students were innocent and had not intended to participate in any act of disrespect.The council consequently modified the chairman’s order regarding the enrolment ban. “All the students will be entitled to get enrolled with the State Bar Councils of their choice,” the order said.The BCI, however, has not closed the matter. It said it would wait for the inquiry report of the NALSAR Vice-Chancellor, after which further action would be taken. The council also recorded that it had received reports that “a handful of teachers and outsiders were instrumental in instigating the innocent students.”The BCI concluded its revised direction with a line that directly addresses the question of the graduating students’ professional future: “No student shall be made to suffer without any fault on his part.”The reversal followed a sharp reaction from Cockroach Janata Party spokesperson Saurav Das after the earlier BCI order. Das had called the decision “illegal” and “condemnable” and demanded its immediate withdrawal.Das said several NALSAR students had opposed inviting the CJI to their convocation and had said they would not receive their degrees from him.“If NALSAR students felt that they do not want to receive degrees from the Chief Justice of India, who are you to release such an order?” Das said.The legal head of CJP, Ratna Singh, speaking to The Tribune exclusively, said, “The Chairman should think before passing such orders, the position is not his personal entity. And why there should be an inquiry against NALSAR students? The BCI should completely take back its previous order.”Das had warned that if the BCI did not withdraw the order, the CJP would organise a peaceful protest involving lawyers, advocates, retired judges and other prominent personalities outside the BCI office and other locations.The BCI’s revised order now restores the immediate enrolment route for the 2026 NALSAR graduates, while leaving the underlying controversy subject to the Vice-Chancellor’s inquiry.