New Delhi: Bar Council of India (BCI) chairman Manan Kumar Mishra has apologised for his now-withdrawn order seeking to prevent state bar councils from enroling Nalsar University of Law’s graduating batch. This is his fourth letter since Thursday, August 13, when he issued numerous directions against students who opposed inviting Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant to Nalsar’s convocation.In an Independence Day letter, Mishra wrote, “If anything connected with the present controversy, any of my words, or letter, has hurt the feelings of our law students, I sincerely regret and apologise for the same.” He acknowledged that his actions had caused “concern and anguish” among students.In a late-night release issued on August 14, the Student Bar Council (SBC) at Nalsar had demanded an apology from Mishra for his remarks. The SBC was particularly concerned by the language used in his letters. Mishra had spoken about “groupism”, “dirty politics”, and made other allegations against faculty and students.“The relationship between the judiciary, the bar, universities and law students is much deeper and more enduring than any temporary controversy,” Mishra wrote in the latest letter, sent August 15.Without explaining why, Mishra, a BJP Rajya Sabha MP, also wrote that an “expression of regret is not a matter of prestige or ego”. It is “simply an acknowledgment that the feelings and concerns of our students matter”.But his latest letter did not specifically name Nalsar, the CJI, the withdrawn enrolment order or the particular allegations about “groupism”, “dirty politics”, faculty, alumni, etc.More students join opposition to BCI’s movesMeanwhile, the graduating students as well as alumni of the National Law School of India University (NLSIU), Bengaluru, also condemned Mishra. They demanded an unconditional apology for “attempting to infringe the fundamental right to free speech and expression” of Nalsar students and faculty.They also demanded clarity from the BCI over the use of the official letterhead on which Mishra had been issuing repeated missives. They said he must make amends before attending NLSIU convocations.On the other hand, Mishra wrote on Saturday that the issue “should not be allowed to acquire a political or extraneous colour through outside influence”. At the same time, he wrote that students’ concerns “deserve to be heard with patience, sensitivity and respect”.Students had protested against CJI Kant’s presence at their convocation following his “cockroaches” remark and subsequent courtroom comments. This, according to Mishra’s very first communication addressed to Nalsar’s vice-chancellor, was a signal they did not deserve to be lawyers.He had then directed Nalsar Vice-Chancellor Professor Srikrishna Deva Rao to furnish, “within three days”, an authenticated account of an alleged “campaign” by students regarding the invitation extended to CJI Kant. It also asked Rao to identify those “principally instrumental” in initiating, organising, drafting, circulating, coordinating or mobilising opposition to the CJI leading the convocation ceremonies.His original letter had also struck out at the teachers at Nalsar, saying, “This is a very serious matter. The teachers, instead of involving themselves in their teaching job, are doing nasty politics on the campus.”The university was asked to hand over the representation, petition or memorandum submitted over the issue, as well as the complete list of signatories in its official records. It wanted the social media accounts and students’ other details scanned.The statement from Nalsar’s SBC touched on each of these aspects, saying that Mishra was not only the head of a statutory regulator (BCI) but a sitting Rajya Sabha member of the ruling party who described himself as a supporter of Prime Minister Narendra Modi.Against this backdrop, the students wrote, the attempt to identify faculty members, alumni, research scholars, and “outsiders” behind dissent appears like the familiar political exercise in which dissent is recast as conspiracy, disagreement as subversion, and protest as external manipulation, the SBC wrote.SC rebuke, calls for resignationOn Friday, August 14, the Supreme Court had stepped into the controversy, with CJI Kant strongly disapproving of the BCI’s intervention. “BCI is unnecessarily taking action,” Kant had said, adding that if students had a cause to protest, “they have the right to protest”. He said the BCI’s actions were “totally uncalled for” and said the issue was a matter of dialogue between the students and himself.Over the course of the last couple of days, calls for Mishra to resign had intensifed. The Cockroach Janata Party (CJP), many from the legal fraternity and others raised questions about his position on key issues and independence.“Moral responsibility commands that Manan Kumar Mishra resigns. Cockroaches both inside and outside courts should ensure this happens,” CJP spokesperson Saurav Das wrote on X Friday morning.Supreme Court advocate Prashant Bhushan wrote on X that Mishra “feels that he can act like a dictator, because he has the system under his control”.Mishra, who had issued another letter, a significant climbdown, by then, had responded to calls for his resignation by saying that he was “ready to talk to the CJP”. He also admitted that other BCI members did not agree with his “hastily issued” order on August 13.“There is no question of any kind of action against the students,” he stated, “I want to convey this to [CJP founder Abhijeet] Dipke ji and [CJP spokesperson] Saurav Das ji,” he said.Mishra had earlier said that “anti-nationals” had entered the CJP protest against examination irregularities at Jantar Mantar.Responding to news of Mishra’s apology, Das wrote on X on Saturday, “Chhatra ekta zindabad! Yuva ekta zindabad!” (Long live student unity! Long live youth unity!)