The High Court of Karnataka has permitted the Karnataka State Law University to take steps to complete the process of examinations/evaluation of the students of second and fourth semesters of the three years’ LLB course.
A Division Bench, comprising S.G. Pandit and Justice Anant Ramanath Hegde, passed the order while allowing an appeal filed by the university questioning the order of a single-judge Bench of December 14, 2021.
The single judge had directed the university to promote the students of these semesters without conducting the examinations as was done in the case of earlier batches in February 2021.
Determine mode
However, the Division Bench directed the university to determine within 10 days the mode of examination that is online/offline/blended/online open book/assignment based evaluation/research papers as suggested by the Bar Council of India (BCI) and other relevant documents.
Once the mode of examination is decided, the university should take steps forthwith to complete the process of examination/evaluation, and ensure that the time gap prescribed under the rules, if any, for conducting of examinations/evaluation, the Bench said
“We are of the considered opinion that unless examination/evaluation of law student, one cannot be promoted to the next semester or could be certified for issuance of law degree,” the Bench said, after analysing the rules and regulations of the BCI, the apex regulatory body for law courses.
Standard of education
“The field of education is the most affected area during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, when it comes to evaluating the performance of the students studying in professional courses and when it comes to satisfying the students eligibility to next semester evaluation is not to be abandoned altogether,” the Bench said.
“Students studying professional courses have a greater responsibility and need to possess the requisite skill required for their calling. The relaxation shown in non-professional streams cannot be shown here especially in the technical fields like law medicine and engineering. Furthermore, on account of the pandemic one cannot give up maintaining standards of education,” observed the Bench.
Meanwhile, the Bench said that the the present batch of students in the second and fourth semesters cannot be given the benefit of promotion, based on 2020 guidelines of the University Grants Commission (UGC), as was done in case of previous batches on the direction of court’s order in February 2021.
