First semester LLB students up in arms

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 6

The first semester students of LLB today began an indefinite boycott of classes at the Department of Laws, Panjab University, Chandigarh, over the time table. The students are demanding to do away with the class of 2:30 pm to 4 pm.

There are 300 students in the first semester.

A meeting took place today at the department where DSW Prof Emanual Nahar was also present along with the representative of students. But the department reiterated its stand that it would not go against the Bar Council of India rules of 30 hours of teaching per week.

After that, students of all five sections boycotted classes though the teachers claimed that one section had attended the classes.

The students had earlier also raised the issue. The department, for the first time, had introduced new timings from this session under which classes were being held from 8:30 am till 4 pm. 

“The new timings are a departure from the practice being followed till the last session, wherein classes were held in two separate batches — morning and evening. From this session, the authorities have decided to deliver four lectures per day, with each lecture having a duration of one and a half hour,” said Gurpreet Singh, department representative (DR), who is from the Students for Society.

“The students are demanding that the authorities should follow the old pattern. The other option is that instead of conducting regular teaching in the last lecture— 2:30 pm to 4 pm— the authorities should allow students to involve themselves in other allied practical works related to the practice of law. The boycott of classes will continue till the department changes the timings,” he added.

What led to the 

change in timings

The Bar Council of India (BCI) letter dated November 30, 2016, told the PU , “Earlier, the concept of law courses was to get basic knowledge of law and there being no restriction on running of courses as aforesaid students were getting degree and later practising in law. Now after the Legal Education Rules-2008, a restriction has been made keeping in mind the upgrading of standard of legal education by fixing the hours of study each day and period during which it can be run.” It asked the PU to stop the evening batch. The BCI said that if the PU wanted to educate service classes in law in the evening, students would not be able to practice but can only obtain a diploma in law. The evening shift used to run from 5:30 pm to 9:15 pm, for 3 hours and 45 minutes, whereas the 

BCI has mandated that teaching hours should be for 30 hours per week.

The department then decided to do away with the evening shift as it was not proving to be feasible. 

The time-table for morning batch was also changed to follow the norm of 30 hours per week. As of now, there are classes from 8:30 am to 10 am. Then after an half hour break, there are classes from 10:30 to 1:30 pm. After a one-hour break, there is a class from 2:30 pm to 4 pm. The department has a five-day week.