Promote all law students, barring those in final year: BCI to varsities

PRAYAGRAJ: The Bar Council of India (BCI) —a statutory body of the country that regulates legal practice and education in India—has asked universities to promote all law students, except those in final year, on the basis of their previous year’s marks and performance in internal examination of the current year, said officials.

In a missive sent to vice-chancellors and registrars of all law varsities as well as the principals, deans and head of departments of all centres of legal education of the country, including Allahabad University (AU), BCI

secretary Srimanto Sen has sent fresh guidelines for promotion of law students to the next year and the criteria for law exams amid the Covid-19 crisis, said Dean (law) of AU Prof RK Chaubey.

He said AU will now take necessary action as per the BCI directives. AU PRO Shailendra Mishra said the university was committed to adhering to BCI guidelines and the BCI letter would now be put before the appropriate bodies of the central university for necessary action.

Dr Ram Manohar Lohia National Law University (RMLNU) will wait and act according to decision taken by other National law Universities, said vice chancellor of RMLNLU, Prof SK Bhatnagar.

In Uttar Pradesh alone, BCI guidelines will impact about 50,000 students. There are close to 8,000 to 9,000 law students enrolled in Lucknow University and its 170 affiliated degree colleges, including self finance institutions, said a senior law professor of Lucknow university, who do not wish to be identified. BCI has held that final year students of 3 year and 5 years law courses may be allowed to appear in online examinations. However, the universities must adopt an alternative strategy for conducting examinations for those students who are unable to avail the online examinations for any reasons, it added.

For intermediate semester students, the BCI has asked institutions to promote them on the basis of performance of previous years and marks obtained in internal examination of the current year. The universities are directed to conduct the end semester examination within a month of reopening of the colleges, the letter directs.

BCI has made plain that universities must adhere to Covid-19 protocol and ensure that the norms of social distancing are adhered to on the campus and all classrooms and examination halls are sanitized time to time. The universities have also been instructed to maintain the highest academic standards and integrity in conducting the examinations.