“Law Is Not Just Career, It’s A Calling”: President Murmu Encourages Law Graduates To Work For Under-Privileged & Poor

The President of India Smt. Droupadi Murmu joined the 10^th Convocation of National Law University Odisha, Cuttack as the Chief Guest on Wednesday. The event was attended by Prof. Ganeshi Lal, the Governor of Odisha and the Chief Justice of Orissa High Court and Chancellor of NLUO Dr. Justice S. Muralidhar.

The President, at the outset, congratulated all the graduating students of NLUO and said that their degrees shall open new doors for them. She stressed that the Convocation is an occasion for making new resolutions to build sound careers and fulfil expectations of family, society and the nation.

“Let me emphasize the fact that all of you are gifted with equal talent and potential. Those of you who haven’t received medals need not feel inadequate at all. Each one of you can create several opportunities and demonstrate your caliber in the future. I expect those of you who have been recognized today for your excellence to continue the good work with sustained commitment and sense of purpose,” she added.

Praise For NLUO

The President lauded the initiative taken by NLUO to adopt some villages in nearby areas for transforming them into child friendly villages. She said that engagement of students with village communities will sensitize them to the ground realities faced by millions of Indians residing in villages. Inculcating social awareness and sensitivity among the students is part of their holistic education, she stressed.

Message Behind NLUO Motto

She highlighted that the motto of NLUO clearly describes the ideals to be followed by the students as duty-conscious legal professionals. The motto ‘Satye Sthito Dharmah’ means that Dharma is firmly rooted in Satya or Truth.

“In the Indian tradition, the word Dharma does not mean any specific religion or denomination. It means the Supreme Law or the Universal Law that sustains or supports everything including the individual, society and nature. In ancient India the two words frequently used to describe courts were ‘Dharma-sabha’ and ‘Dharmadhikarana’. For today’s modern India, our Dharma is contained in the Constitution of India, which is the supreme law of the land. The entire legal fraternity, including the young students passing out today, must abide by the Constitution as their sacred text,” she said.

Recognising Legendary Legal Icons

The President acknowledged the contributions of Babasahab Dr. Bhimrao Ambedkar in drafting the Constitution.

“His central role in the drafting of our Constitution is well known. He overcame unimaginable difficulties to achieve world class excellence as an individual. He used his individual brilliance to promote the collective cause of serving the underprivileged. I am addressing you as the President of India because Dr. Ambedkar made it possible for someone like me to reach where I am today,” she remarked.

She said that India’s freedom struggle was led by qualified lawyers who were filled with the spirit of sacrifice for the nation. She underlined the phenomenal contributions made by Utkal Gouraba Madhusudan Das who is popularly referred to as ‘Madhu-Barrister’ in Odisha.

“For the people of Odisha, Mahatma Gandhi and Madhu Barrister are the two most respected icons of our freedom struggle. Great freedom fighters and lawyers like them also upheld the ideals of Justice, Liberty, Equality and Fraternity in order to build a progressive and cohesive society. These ideals have been duly embedded in our Constitution. You must remain steadfast in observing the Constitutional ideals. You should be sensitive to the priorities of the nation. You should also make conscious efforts to contribute to those national priorities,” she urged.

The President then urged the students and every Indian citizen to ensure equal opportunity and respect for the vulnerable segments of population, including women.

“I am happy to note that in today’s convocation, girls have out-numbered boys in obtaining LL.M. and Ph.D. They have received nearly equal number of gold medals. I have been informed that the number of girls in LL.B. courses is also catching up with that of boys. The journey of women lawyers, judges and jurists has been challenging, yet inspiring,” she said.

She expressed concern that a very large number of under-privileged and vulnerable citizens do not even know about their rights and entitlements, nor do they have the means to approach the Courts to seek relief or justice.

“It is your duty to dedicate some part of your professional time to serving the un-served or under-privileged. A lot of lawyers have been doing pro-bono work, community service and advocacy for the marginalized. Many of them have been very successful and some of them have become judges in the Supreme Court as a culmination of their illustrious legal career.”

The President then highlighted the following words of Mahatma Gandhi, “a true lawyer is one who places truth and service in the first place and the emoluments of the profession in the next place only”.

“Here I must correct a common misperception that Mahatma Gandhi was not a very successful lawyer. In fact, he had a flourishing legal practice and a very competent team of clerks and juniors in South Africa. He sacrificed money to fight for self-respect and national honour. I am not suggesting that you sacrifice the financial gains of your career. All I am appealing for is to devote at least a small part of your professional activities to helping the poor and the weak with a sense of genuine compassion. It is rightly said that law is not just a career, it is a calling.”

Lastly, she hoped that the developed India will have many students from NLUO as legal luminaries and national leaders and with this expectation, she ended her speech wishing great future to all the students.