The valedictory ceremony of the 15th Padma Vibhushan N. A. Palkhivala Memorial National (Virtual) Moot Court and Research Paper Competition, 2026, was held on 31 October 2026, marking the successful conclusion of the two competitions. The ceremony witnessed the announcement of the winners and runners-up across both categories, recognising the participants' exceptional advocacy, research and legal acumen.

Organised in memory of the eminent jurist and constitutional expert, Adv. Nani Palkhivala, the competition brought together law students from institutions across the country, providing a platform to engage with contemporary legal issues and demonstrate their skills in legal research, written submissions and oral advocacy.

Distinguished Gathering

The valedictory ceremony was graced by the presence of Hon'ble Justice Shri Rajesh Patil of the Bombay High Court as the Chief Guest. The distinguished dignitaries present on the occasion included:

  • Prof. (Dr.) Dilip Ukey, Vice-Chancellor, Maharashtra National Law University, Mumbai

  • Dr. K. Shivaram, Senior Advocate, Bombay High Court

  • Adv. Tushar Hemani, Senior Advocate, Gujarat High Court

  • Adv. K. Gopal, President, ITAT Bar Association, Mumbai

  • CA S. Venkataramani, National President, AIFTP

  • Adv. G. Baskar, Secretary General, AIFTP

The ceremony was also attended by distinguished members of the Bar and participants from various institutions across the country.

Moot Court Competition Results

The Moot Court Competition witnessed an impressive display of advocacy, legal reasoning and courtroom skills. The results were as follows:

Winners

Daksh Balakrishna, Asutosh Kar and Sadhana Kasi

National Law School of India University (Non-Institutional Team)

First Runners-Up

Dimple Ganiga P, Konkumutti Sai Nidhith and Sowmya S

Alliance University

Second Runners-Up

Bikram Manhas, Tanishka Singh and Raj Rajeshwari

National Law Institute University, Bhopal

Individual and Memorial Awards

  • Best Speaker: Bikram Manhas, National Law Institute University, Bhopal

  • Best Researcher: Vinay Negi, Vivekananda Institute of Professional Studies (Non Institutional Team)

  • Best Memorial: Pavietran Sarojkumar, Manav Bafna V and Tejasviya R, School of Excellence in Law, The Tamil Nadu Dr. Ambedkar Law University

Research Paper Competition Results

The Research Paper Competition, centred on the theme “The Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023 and Tax Surveillance: A Constitutional Collision?”, encouraged participants to critically examine the intersection of data protection, privacy and the constitutional dimensions of tax surveillance.

Winners

Saujanya Sarkar and Saurav Joshi

Vivekanand Institute of Professional Studies – Technical Campus

Non-institutional team

First Runners-Up

Apoorv Chopra and Archit Sharma

Law Centre-II, Faculty of Law, University of Delhi

Second Runners-Up

Priyanshu Dwivedi and Nisha Desai

Maharashtra National Law University, Nagpur

The competition concluded on a celebratory note, with the dignitaries congratulating the winners and acknowledging the efforts of all participating teams. The event reaffirmed the importance of fostering a strong culture of legal scholarship, research and advocacy among aspiring legal professionals.

The organisers extend their congratulations to all the winners and participants for their enthusiasm, dedication and contribution towards making the 15th edition of the competition a success.


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