Law Student Challenges The BCI Decision To Scrap One-Year L.L.M Programme

(Judicial Quest News Network)

A petition has been filed before Apex Court Challenging the decision of Bar Council of India (BCI) to scrap the one-rear LL.M programme and derecognise foreign LL.M.

The BCI in its recent notification had notified that the BCI Legal Education (Post Graduate, Doctoral, Executive, Vocational, Clinical and other continuing Education) Rules 2020 scrapping the one-year LL.M course. The rules were notified in the official gazette on January 4.

A Writ Petition under Article 32 of the Constitution of India has been filed against the notification dated 02.01.2021 issued by the Bar Council of India in the official gazette on 4th January, 2021.

By way of the said notification, the Bar Council of India has proposed new rules i.e., Bar Council of India Legal Education (Post-Graduate, Doctoral, Executive, Vocational, Clinical and other Continuing Education), Rules, 2020 which essentially apart from various reforms abolishes the One Year L.L.M Programme (Master of Laws) in India and further has stated that L.L.M of One Year Obtained from a Foreign University will not be considered equivalent to Indian L.L.M degree.

The only exception herein would be if someone has a teaching experience of One year post his L.L.M degree, in an Indian University then that one year teaching experience along with one Year L. L. M degree obtained from Foreign University may be considered as equivalent to Indian L.L.M Degree. Apart from this wide ranges of changes have been proposed pertaining to fellowship and PhD Programme as well.

The Petitioner Tamanna Chandan Chachlani who is herself a Law Student through her lawyer Rahul Shyam Bhandari, Advocate on Record, Supreme Court of India who has drafted and filed the petition, has made a challenge to the said notification to the extent of abolishment of One Year L.L.M Programme and further failing to recognize L.L.M Degree from a Foreign University.

The Petition has been filed in Supreme Court of India pleading infringement of her fundamental rights of Right to Quality Education, such actions amounting to discriminatory Practice.  

It also amounts to interference in her Right to Practice Profession. It is going to adversely affect her future career and liberty of choosing the quality education. The Petition Provisional Application No 567 of 2021.  

It is titled as Tamanna Chandan Chachlani vs Bar Council of India and Ors. The Petitioner has also prayed for a Stay of the Notification.

Challenge is broadly being made on the point that Bar Council of India, a regulatory body for the Lawyers has no authority or power to regulate Higher Education in the field of Law.

This is the job of University Grants Commission or of an expert body. The notification is ultra vires to its parent Act of Advocates Act, 1961.

That Enactment of the Legal Education Rules, 2020 is a usurpation of powers provided to UGC, MHRD and Universities.  

There exists no rational clarification for abolishing the one-year LLM program in the country, the impugned decisions merely come on the vagueness for want of more standards. The impugned notification doesn’t have the Constitutional Mandate of Schedule VII of the Constitution of India.  There is no logical corollary to equate one-year Foreign L.L.M with Indian two-year L.L.M.

The Petitioner is the first one to approach the Court and the matter is yet to be taken up for a hearing.

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