HARYANA ADVOCATE-GENERAL CAN NOW ENGAGE UPTO 15 LAW OFFICERS WITHOUT SELECTION PROCESS

STATE GOVERNORPROMULGATES HARYANA LAW OFFICERS (ENGAGEMENT) AMENDMENT ORDINANCE, 2026, NUMBER OF CONTRACTUAL APPOINTMENTS AT ADVOCATE GENERAL’S DISCRETION RAISED FROM 10 TO 15; AMENDMENT TAKES IMMEDIATE EFFECT—HEMANT KUMAR

Face2Newa/Chandigarh

The Haryana Government has expanded the powers of its Advocate General (AG) by allowing the State’s top law officer to engage up to 15 contractual Law Officers without any formal selection process, however subject to prior approval of the State Government.

The change has come into force following the promulgation of the Haryana Law Officers (Engagement) Amendment Ordinance, 2026 by Governor Prof. Ashim Kumar Ghosh on July 22 under Article 213(1) of the Constitution of India.

According to Advocate Hemant Kumar, a Punjab and Haryana High Court lawyer and an expert on legislative and constitutional matters, the Ordinance amends the proviso to Section 6(3) of the Haryana Law Officers (Engagement) Act, 2016, replacing the existing limit of 10 Law Officers with 15, with immediate effect.

“The Ordinance has already been published in the Haryana Government Gazette and is now enforceable. It would be introduced in the form of a Bill during the forthcoming Monsoon Session of the Haryana Legislative Assembly, likely to be held in August or perhaps September, for replacing the Ordinance with a regular statute,” Hemant asserted.

No Selection Process Prescribed

The amendment enables the Advocate General to engage these additional Law Officers on a contractual basis, based on the requirements of his office and the special qualifications or experience of the advocates concerned. However, such appointments continue to require the approval of the State Government.

Unlike regular government recruitment, the Act does not prescribe any competitive selection process for these appointments.

Large Legal Establishment Already in Place

Hemant quipped out that the Advocate General’s establishment is already among the largest legal offices in the State.At present, around 185 Law Officers of various ranks are serving in the Advocate General’s office at the Punjab and Haryana High Court, Chandigarh, while more than three dozen Law Officers are posted in the Haryana Legal Cell, New Delhi, which represents the State before the Supreme Court of India.

These appointments include officers designated as:

Senior Additional Advocate General, Additional Advocate General, Senior Deputy Advocate General
Deputy Advocate General, Assistant Advocate General

Third Increase Since 2016

The latest amendment marks the third upward revision in the statutory ceiling on discretionary contractual appointments by the Advocate General.

When the Haryana Law Officers (Engagement) Act, 2016 originally came into force in September 2016, the Advocate General could engage only five advocates under the proviso to Section 6(3).

The limit was subsequently doubled from five to ten through an amendment enacted by the BJP-JJP government led by then Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. Although the amendment received the Governor’s assent earlier, it was formally notified and brought into force in June 2021.

With the promulgation of the 2026 Ordinance, the ceiling has now been enhanced from 10 to 15, further enlarging the Advocate General’s discretion to induct contractual Law Officers without any statutory selection mechanism.