CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has directed the Bar Council of India to consider making necessary changes in its rules so that candidates who don't pursue regular courses in their higher secondary or UG levels are ineligible to pursue law.
Justice N Anand Venkatesh passed the directions allowing a plea moved by a student who was not allowed admission for a three-year LLB course as he had pursued his undergraduation in distance education mode.
The court while allowing the students admission observed that Rule 5 of the Bar Council of India Legal Education Rules does not disqualify any candidate from applying for a law course.
“It is clear that as per the existing rules, the petitioner is eligible for being considered as a candidate for the three year BL course subject to the condition that the petitioner again participates
in the selection for the academic year 2020-2021 and obtains necessary cut off marks,” the judge said in his order.
Pointing out the specific rule in BCI the judge observed, "The proviso makes it clear that even applicants who have obtained Higher Secondary or Under Graduation through distance education will be eligible for admission for the 5-year course or the 3-year course, as the case may be. The explanation clearly states that the applicant should not have obtained 10+2 or UG or PG through the Open University system directly without having any basic qualification.... a person who has obtained the qualification even through distance/correspondence education is eligible to be considered for admission to the 3-year course."
Till this rule is in force, a candidate has to be considered for admission to the course, ordered Justice Anand Venkatesh.
The court also pointed out that the Bar Council of India should take a cue from this judgment and make necessary changes in its rules allowing only those who completed Higher Secondary and UG through the regular course to be eligible for selection.
"In the absence of this, persons who have not even gone to a regular school or college will get into a law college for the first time in their life and that may not be a healthy trend to maintain the quality of education in law. The Bar Council of India should seriously take this suggestion into consideration and make necessary changes to the rules," he emphasized.