NAGPUR: The Maharashtra National Law University, Nagpur, (MNLU-N) is currently training the country’s first batch of 40 students, who would be eligible to directly become judges after completing their five-year BALLB (honours) degree in ‘Adjudication & Justicing’.
The graduates would, of course, also need to clear the examinations conducted by the public service commissions of respective states, like MPSC in Maharashtra, to be recruited as judges.
“This is the first such course in India.
The batch has been selected after a rigorous selection process.
Besides clearing Common Law Admission Test (CLAT), they were subjected to group discussions and then interviewed by a panel of eminent high court judges,” MNLU chancellor Justice Bhushan Gavai told TOI.
The course was the brainchild of former chief justice of India Sharad Bobde, also the first MNLU-N chancellor, who had proposed a National Judicial Academy (NJA) on the lines of National Defence Academy (NDA) to train law students in the art of judging.
TOI was the first to report the proposed NJA on August 19, 2019.
Justice Gavai, also Supreme Court judge, added these 40 students would be trained in such a way that they are ready to discharge duties of a judicial officer on graduating.
“We’re making efforts to get permission from the government to allow them to appear in public service commission exams when they reach their final year.
This way they can be directly recruited, after passing out.” MNLU Executive Council member justice Ravindra Chavan, who helped draft the syllabus, said these students could fill the vacuum of good judges in lower judiciary.
“These students would be trained in all aspects of the judiciary, including understanding the case properly, applying relevant provisions of the law, and developing a vision to dispense justice.” Vice chancellor Vijender Kumar said due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the admissions were delayed and the course started in October last year.
“These students were selected by a panel of HC judges, including Bharti Dangre, Rohit Deo and Manish Pitale.
The teaching methodology for them is totally different from other students.
We’re also training our teachers in subjects related to justicing.
Since these students hail from ten states, including the northeast, we’re training them in a way that they can appear in any judicial exam after their graduation.” The course was granted recognition by the Bar Council of India (BCI) and if the students don’t want to join the judiciary, s/he can still practice as a lawyer across any court in India.
“From August, we would be starting our second batch of this unique course, but the classes would continue to be held online till the situation normalizes,” the VC said.