[ad_1]
New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday supported reducing the mandatory basic attendance of 70 per cent for law courses and sought the stand of the Bar Council of India.
A bench of Justices Prathiba M Singh and Amit Sharma said it is common for students to undertake internships with lawyers to enhance their learning period and on many occasions, classes were not held due to absence of faculty.
The bench said that BCI being the regulator should take into account the actual ground reality in the field of law and then frame rules for attendance in law courses.
It said, “The baseline can be 40 percent. They can supplement with certifications. Most classes are over by 1 or 2 p.m. They can learn practically. The baseline should be lower. The exam you can take in any “Can’t stop in this situation.” ,
The court expressed its reservations with regard to a purported BCI circular mandating the use of biometrics and CCTV to record the attendance of law students and said the move was “completely far from reality”.
It also said that any attendance requirement that detains a student is contrary to the interest of the student and asked the BCI to introduce relevant material resulting in the baseline attendance increasing from 66 per cent to 70 per cent.
“The regulator should keep in mind what students want, what they are thinking… The regulator cannot be ignorant of what is happening on the ground. There has to be some justification for it. Why is it 70 per cent?” The court said.
It asked BCI to examine the proposal of reduction in basic attendance in respect of both three-year and five-year law courses.
The court passed the order while dealing with the case of law student Sushant Rohilla’s death by suicide in 2016 after he was allegedly barred from appearing for the semester examinations due to lack of requisite attendance.
Rohilla, a third-year law student from Amity, died by hanging at his home on 10 August 2016 after his college allegedly barred him from appearing for semester examinations due to lack of requisite attendance.
The present petition was initiated by the Supreme Court in September, 2016 after the incident, but was transferred to the High Court in March, 2017.
The court had earlier said that there is an urgent need to re-look at the mandatory attendance norms in colleges and universities as the teaching methods have changed significantly after the COVID-19 pandemic.
It said the mental health of students should be kept in mind while considering attendance requirements and the role of grievance redressal mechanisms and support systems in educational institutions should be streamlined.
The hearing of this case will take place in February, 2025.
This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without any modifications to the text.
[ad_2]
