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The PIL, filed by a full-time law faculty member at Jitendra Chauhan College of Law affiliated with the University of Mumbai, highlighted the alarming drop in attendance to as low as 10% by the third academic year due to students engaging in internships
The Bombay High Court has sought a response from Mumbai University in a Public Interest Litigation that calls for enforcing a 75% attendance requirement in law schools.
A division bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Upadhyaya and Justice Amit Borkar took note of the affidavit submitted by the University Grants Commission (UGC) on Thursday.
The affidavit stated that UGC Regulations clearly mandate not only the minimum number of lectures/tutorials/seminars/practicals that the students are required to attend for eligibility to appear in the examination which shall be prescribed by the university and should not be less than 75% of the total number of lectures/tutorials/seminars/practicals etc. but it also prescribes that every university enrolling the students shall ensure that the number of actual teaching days on which classes are held or conducted, is not less than 180 days in an academic year, excluding holidays and vacations.
The petitioner stated that the circular dated 24th September 2024 issued by the Bar Council of India, which is addressed to all the Vice Chancellors/Registrars of Universities/Centers of Legal Education, prescribing certain norms to be followed by the students which, inter alia; provides that a proof of compliance of the attendance norms as per Rule 12 of the Rules of Legal Education must also be provided. Therefore, the bench also sought a reply from the Bar Council of India seeking their reply.
The PIL, filed by a full-time law faculty member at Jitendra Chauhan College of Law affiliated with the University of Mumbai, highlighted the alarming drop in attendance to as low as 10% by the third academic year due to students engaging in internships.
The petitioner, Dr. Sharmila Ghuge, brought attention to the deteriorating standards of legal education. Despite stringent regulations mandating 75% attendance, the actual attendance often falls short, raising concerns about the quality of education being imparted.
The PIL drew attention to Ordinance 6086, which mandates a minimum attendance of 75% for law students. The plea stated, “According to Ordinance 6086, there is a strict stipulation mandating a minimum of 75% attendance during lectures, practical sessions, and tutorials for all learners of the University of Mumbai. However, it has been observed that the actual attendance of students in various law colleges fall considerably short of this requirement, often ranging between 0% to 30%. ln many instances, not even 10% of students manage to achieve the mandatory 75% attendance mark.”
The plea also highlighted the existing practice of allowing students with zero attendance to sit for exams, which undermines the quality of legal education and the future of the legal system. “Such system is in place for many years which has decayed the teaching learning process and the same is totally against the high hopes of the qualitative education and the future of the legal system of this country,” it further stated.
Case title: Sharmila Ghuge vs University of Mumbai
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