Law Students At Delhi University Write To BCI Seeking Cancellation Of Pending Intermediate Term Exams For Final Year Students

Law Faculty, DU follows a 3-year LL.B structure. Exams for intermediate term were postponed last year due to restrictions pertaining to Covid-19, and remain indefinitely postponed. The letter seeks cancellation of pending exams on the ground that results of final year students will be delayed if pending and upcoming exams are conducted together.

The letter by Ravi Singh Chhikara, a final year student at the faculty, on behalf of 230+ students, mentions that if pending exams are not cancelled, final year students will miss deadlines for LLM admissions and jobs, since declaration of results for pending exams will cause further delay. Citing the extraordinary situation due to Covid-19, it also makes a plea for conducting final semester exams in ABE mode (Assignment-Based Examination), as has been done in NLU Delhi, Jindal Global Law School and other major law colleges.

The letter cites a Karnataka High Court order in Ritvik Balanagraj B v. Bar Council of India, W.P. 14389/2020 which quashed the BCI's notification dated 1.11.2020 which allowed conducting pending intermediate term exams in online mode noting that it did not have proper application of mind, and directed law students be marked for their intermediate semester as per the UGC guidelines i.e. through a composite scheme-50% marks from the internal assessments and 50% marks for previous performance.

The letter urges the BCI and Faculty of Law, DU to cancel exams pending from last year and to evaluate students in ABE mode for the upcoming final semester exams.

For a detailed account of the situation, also see: Pending Exams at Delhi University's Faculty of Law