Senior Advocate Pinky Anand calls BICC appointment a "recognition of India's soft power"; CJI-designate, Law Minister to attend Bahrain ceremony

New Delhi [India], October 27 (ANI): Senior Advocate Pinky Anand called her appointment as a Member of the Bahrain International Commercial Court (BICC) a "recognition of India's soft power", highlighting the reforms by the Centre to "put India on the map as a global arbitration hub."
"The appointment as a member of the BICC is not just a moment of personal privilege and honour; it is a recognition of India's soft power and the strength of our diaspora of women lawyers and arbitrators," said Senior Advocate Pinky Anand to ANI, following her appointment as a Member of the Bahrain International Commercial Court (BICC).
She added, "Over the last decade, the reforms taken by our Government have put India on the map as a global arbitration hub. My appointment is a byproduct of that vision."
The appointment will be formally marked during the King Hamad Lecture for Neutral Justice Ceremony and the two-day international conference titled "The Future of International Commercial Courts: Towards Transnational Justice", scheduled to be held on November 5 and 6, 2025, in Manama, Kingdom of Bahrain.

Chief Justice-designate of India Justice Surya Kant and Union Minister of Law and Justice Arjun Ram Meghwal will attend the event, which will see participation from leading global jurists and legal experts.
Pinky Anand, an eminent Senior Advocate of the Supreme Court of India, has an illustrious legal career spanning over 45 years. She has served two terms as Additional Solicitor General of India and has extensive experience both domestically and internationally in litigation and arbitration.
Her appointment to the BICC underscores the international recognition of India's legal acumen and its emerging leadership in global arbitration and dispute resolution frameworks. It also reflects the success of India's sustained policy reforms aimed at establishing the country as a preferred hub for international arbitration.
The Bahrain International Commercial Court (BICC) is a judicial institution established to adjudicate international commercial disputes. The Court is designed to promote judicial efficiency, transparency, and investor confidence in Bahrain and the broader Middle East region.
The two-day event in Bahrain will feature addresses by several distinguished jurists, including Chief Justice Sundaresh Menon (Singapore), Professor Jan Paulsson (President, BICC), Justice Philip Jeyaretnam (President, Singapore International Commercial Court), and Professor Joan Donoghue (Twenty Essex).
Discussions will focus on the evolution of transnational justice and the role of international commercial courts in strengthening global judicial cooperation in the 21st century.
India's participation in the event underlines its growing role in shaping global legal discourse and its commitment to judicial collaboration across jurisdictions.
The partnership between India and Bahrain is rooted in a shared history of trade and cultural exchange, with links dating back to the Indus Valley Civilisation, one of the world's earliest centres of commerce.
Today, the Indian diaspora in Bahrain, around 340,000 persons, accounting for nearly a quarter of the Kingdom's population, continues to serve as a vital bridge of friendship, culture, and economic cooperation between the two nations.
High-level visits, including His Majesty King Hamad's visit to India in 2014 and Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Bahrain in 2019 (when he was conferred the Order of Renaissance, First Class), have further cemented bilateral ties. Through a series of agreements and MoUs in taxation, information technology, sports, space, and solar energy, both nations have enhanced their strategic and institutional cooperation. (ANI)