Drishyam Vidhi | Audio-Video Mode Of Teaching And Learning Criminal Law Introduced At DNLU, Jabalpur

To bridge the gap between the Academics and Practice of Criminal Law, a new audio-video mode of teaching and learning Criminal Law called 'Drishyam Vidhi' has been introduced in Dharmashastra National Law University, Jabalpur.

The idea was conceptualized by Madhya Pradesh High Court judge Justice Anand Pathak, who had earlier demonstrated this mode of learning at a limited scale in a Conference of Police Officers (for investigation purpose) and before the Civil Judges at State Judicial Academy, Jabalpur (for adjudication purpose).

This approach aims to acclimate law students with the nitty gritty of procedures of Investigation, Prosecution and Adjudication so that when the students come out of College and enter into Courtrooms, they must be sufficiently equipped for the manner Investigations and Trials are carried out.

The whole concept of Drishyam Vidhi revolves around a unique method of teaching the practical aspects of law in which the teaching and learning process involves audio-visual methods to provide a deeper understanding of the law. If a concept is taught through the help of visuals it leaves a photographic effect on the brain of the student. Showing a video involving a legal viewpoint gives the student a live experience of the situation happening. Since the student has seen the visuals it would be easier for them to understand the legal aspects involved in the visual by connecting the facts of the case. In this way, the students will get more clarity of the facts compared with orally telling them about the facts. Further, this will result in a more active and zealous learning environment.

According to Justice Pathak, this project can be formulated in a competitive manner like a Moot Court competition also where all participating teams can be shown a clip of a movie well in advance and can be given sufficient time to complete their investigation, prosecution, defence and judgment writing. Later on, procedural aspects of criminal investigation/trial can also be addressed by incorporating different applications like Sections 91, 216, 311, 317, and 319 of Cr.P.C.

Stage I of this initiative which was aimed at making the students aware of the approach of the initiative has been completed on April 29 and the next phase is planned to commence after two months.

Adv. Vijay Dutt Sharma, Adv. Prashant Sharma and from DNLU, Vice Chancellor, Dr. Prof. V. Nagaraj; Dr. Praveen Tripathi, Dean Student Welfare; and Professor Shashank Pathak provided assistance to the programme.