Week before exam, MU releases sixth merit list for LLM course

ONE SEAT IN THE INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY LAW, 8 IN ENVIRONMENTAL LAW AND ORDER WILL GO VACANT

MUMBAI: Merely a week ahead of semester exams, the University of Mumbai (MU) released the sixth and final merit list of candidates admitted to the Masters of Law (LLM) course on Wednesday.

The first semester exams for LLM students are scheduled to kick off on June 1 and newly admitted students will have only a week to prepare.

“It is unfair of the university to expect students to prepare for exams in a week,” said a student on the condition of anonymity.

On May 15, the university’s department of law issued a notice allowing candidates, who couldn’t make it to the five merit lists, to apply afresh to vacant seats for spot admissions. On the same notice, the department announced that the sixth merit list would be the last one. Rajeshwari Varhad, head of the department of law, did not respond to calls or messages.

Meanwhile, the final merit list states that nine seats reserved for students from marginalised backgrounds would remain vacant for want of applicants. There are around 800 seats for LLM in six divisions—constitutional and administrative law, business law, intellectual property and information technology law, human rights law, criminal law and criminal administration and environmental and legal order.

The sixth merit list states that since there are no applications from Vanjari nomadic tribes (NT-D category) and as well as from other backward classes (OBC Category), one seat in the intellectual property law course will go vacant. Eight seats will go vacant in environmental law and order.

Applicants claimed that until last year, all unclaimed seats were converted into general category seats in the final round of admissions. “This is an arbitrary rule brought in by the department this year that seats will go vacant if there are no applications from that category. As it is, the number of seats are precious few,” said an applicant, who had applied for environmental law and order after the fifth round. He didn’t make it to the sixth merit list despite scoring 70 marks in the entrance exam.