HC Queries Admission to DU’s 5-Year Law Courses Will Be Performed Through CLAT, Not CUET

The Delhi University’s decision to accept students to its five-year integrated law program only on the basis of the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT-UG), 2023, was called into doubt by the Delhi High Court on Thursday.

The High Court ruled that Delhi University was “not special” since other central institutions accepted admissions for the program based on the Common University Entrance Test (CUET) UG 2023 adopted by the Ministry of Education (MoE).

“You are not exceptional under the National Education Policy once the Government of India, Ministry of Education, decides that admissions are to be made at central institutions exclusively on the basis of CUET. The Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Sanjeev Narula’s bench expressed their regret.

 

A petition against DU’s plan to admit students to its five-year integrated law program entirely on the basis of the CLAT-UG, 2023, was being heard by the high court. The court gave the DU attorney further time to get more guidance on the subject and submit a counter-affidavit in response to the petition before the next hearing date on August 25.

 

The bench stated: “It is made clear that the matter will be heard on the issue of grant of interim relief in case no counter affidavit is filed before the next date of hearing.” Additionally, it gave Centre’s attorney time to submit a response to the plea and get guidance on the situation.

 

The attorney representing DU said at the hearing that as the five-year integrated law study had just begun this year, the academic year would be lost if a stay of the August 4 notice was granted. He said that as of right now, just the notice has been made, and he requested more time to provide a response to the petition.

 

According to the DU’s attorney, “until the next date of hearing, the university will not issue any advertisement inviting applications for the five-year law course based on CLAT.” The petition demanded that the CUET-UG, 2023, be used for admittance to the five-year integrated legal program.

 

For admission to all undergraduate programs in central institutions for the academic year 2023–2024, it said that the MoE has established the CUET–UG 2023. Prince Singh, a petitioner and a student at Delhi University’s Campus Law Center, argued that the university violated both Article 14’s guarantee of equality and Article 21’s guarantee of the right to an education by imposing the “wholly unreasonable and arbitrary condition” that admission to the five-year integrated law program be solely based on performance on the CLAT-UG 2023 exam.

 

The requirement lacks any discernible differentia, according to the argument, and has no relation to the goal of admission to the five-year integrated legal program at the Faculty of legal.