National Law University Delhi's 10th Convocation: 167 Students Graduated From B.A.LL.B.(Hons.), LL.M. And Ph.D. Programmes

At the 10th Convocation of National Law University Delhi, 84 and 78 students from the undergraduate and the post graduate programmes, respectively, received their degrees in law. Five doctoral degrees were also awarded at the convocation. In total, 167 students graduated from these academic programmes.

Professor (Dr.) G.S. Bajpai, Vice Chancellor, National Law University Delhi, in his Welcome Address said, “Legal profession is not just a career. It is a calling to serve and make a meaningful impact in the lives of individuals and the community at large. The power of law lies not only in its ability to enforce rules but in its capacity to bring about positive changes.”

Highlighting NLU Delhi’s contribution to social development, Professor Bajpai said, “At NLU Delhi we take pride in our societal engagement and meaningful impact. One of the ways in which we exemplify this commitment is by actively contributing to the drafting of bills, policy, rules and regulations that shape our legal manuscripts. Our faculty members and students lend their expertise to create well-informed and comprehensive documents that contribute to the betterment of society.”

“NLU Delhi, through the Committee for Reforms in Criminal Law (CRCL), spearheaded the ongoing criminal law reforms. Incidentally, I had the very good fortune of serving as the convener of the committee. It is heartening to note that several progressive provisions in the bills recently introduced in the parliament were inspired by the committee recommendations. We have also been invited to make a presentation before the recently constituted Joint Parliamentary Committee on the subject of amended laws,” Professor Bajpai said.

Talking about NLU Delhi’s achievements over the last one year, he highlighted the launch of various schemes by NLU Delhi; National Scholars-in-Residence Programme and International Visitors Programme to encourage national and international research collaboration, Eklavya Scheme to universalize legal education, Abhyasa Scheme to institutionalize practical learning in a class-room and Utkarsh Scheme to acknowledge the remarkable contribution of faculty and staff to the University.

He underscored NLU Delhi’s commitment to interdisciplinary legal research by highlighting the launch of Ph.D. degree in social sciences. He congratulated NLU Delhi’s students on their achievements in competitive exams including Union Public Service Exam, Judicial Services Exam and National Eligibility Test (UGC NET) saying it’s a “testament not only to their exceptional academic capabilities but their steadfast perseverance to achieve their goals”.

The Vice Chancellor also mentioned how NLU Delhi proposed the institution of the Chief Minister’s Fellowship to law students, in order to bridge the gap of opportunity that often ails our education system. As part of this initiative, 6 fellowships, each valued at 50,000 per month will be awarded to graduate students and the recipients will actively collaborate with various governmental departments, aiding them in policy formulations and evaluation, and in the process empowering both the students and the government of NCT of Delhi.

The event was graced by the presence of Chief Guest, Justice S. Ravindra Bhat, Judge, Supreme Court of India and Visitor, NLU Delhi, who delivered the Convocation Address, where he said, “Study of law is not a means of lucrative career, it is a profound commitment of upholding justice to serve the needs of society and safeguarding the principals enshrined in our constitution and legal system.”

“As someone who lived through the emergency, I hold a firm conviction that our collective ability to raise critical and honest questions will profoundly shape the society as we wish to construct. Today, I implore you to unflinchingly embrace the audacity to pursue forthright answers and not merely settle for convenient ones. Upon your generation falls the task of maintaining and furthering the culture of our Constitution,” he added.

Speaking about women participation in law and related fields he said, “When I joined college, there were fewer women pursuing law. This was not unique to this profession, but a mere reflection of society. Standing here, some 40 years later it is heartening to see how far we have come. Yet there are miles to go to achieve equal participation of women in the work force uniformly in our deeply unequal society.”

Ms. Atishi, Minister of Finance, Planning, Higher Education, Govt of NCT of Delhi and Mr. Kailash Gahlot, Hon’ble Minister of Law, Justice and Legislative Affairs, Govt. of NCT of Delhi, both graced the ceremony as Special Guest of Honour. The conferment of the degrees was done by Hon'ble Mr. Just Satish Chandra Sharma, Chief Justice, High Court of Delhi & Chancellor of NLU Delhi.

The event marked the release of three NLU Delhi journals; Journal of National Law University Delhi (Faculty Journal), Journal of Victimology and Victim Justice (a flagship journal of NLU Delhi) and NLUD journal of Legal Studies (Student's Journal).

Other publications that were released were “Hate Crime in India” written by Professor (Dr.) G.S. Bajpai, NLU Delhi, Garima Pal, Tusha Singh, Advait Tambe, Project 39A’s “Forensic Science India Report”, Centre for Communication Governance’s two books “Mapping the Blockchain Ecosystem in India and Australia” and “Drafting Data Protection Legislation”, the latter authored with guidance from the United Nations Development Programme’s (UNDP) Governance Team in the Bureau for Policy and Programme Support.

At the ceremony, students from the undergraduate and the post graduate programme were also felicitated with Gold Medals, Vice Chancellor’s Medals and cash prizes.

The Convocation was also live streamed on the University’s YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9-zPRCUgDn4