Following the unexpected postponement of Delhi University’s Faculty of Law end-semester exams, students have voiced numerous concerns regarding the abrupt notice issued just 12 hours before the said exams were scheduled to begin.
For context, the University’s Faculty of Law, on Wednesday, July 3, deferred the LLB end-semester examinations which were expected to commence from today, July 4.
Since the notice came out just about 12 hours before the exams were supposed to begin, students raised several apprehensions regarding the postponement.
Praveen Seera, a final-year LLB student at DU’s Faculty of Law, expressed, “This postponement impacts final-year students who already secured provisional admissions in LLM courses at various Indian and foreign universities. Many were set to begin their academic session in early August. Additionally, students applying to private law firms now face a setback, as these firms may prioritise candidates from institutions where the academic calendar remains unaffected.”
The deferment might also affect final-year students who are looking to register with the Bar Council of India (BCI) as the All India Bar Examination (AIBE) is likely to be conducted in August 2024.
Shortage of attendance to blame?
The exams were deferred indefinitely at first, without any explanation, prompting confusion among students. However, today, July 4, DU Vice-Chancellor (VC) Yogesh Singh said that the decision was taken considering a large number of students who were detained due to a shortage of attendance. Following this, the classes will continue for another two weeks, he told ANI.
The examinations are now allegedly scheduled to begin on July 18.
“We appreciate that the decision has been taken with students’ interests in mind. However, it is surprising that for years, we have been raising our voices about delays in academic sessions, gaps in exams, and so on, but not once did the authorities address our problems. Classes have now been suspended for 15 days, and it seems they could have recognised the situation earlier and informed us of the deferment well in advance,” said Praveen, who is also a member of the Students’ Federation of India (SFI), Delhi University.
It should be noted that this issue extends beyond final-year students.
Students also highlighted that the last-minute postponement creates problems for many non-native students who had already booked tickets to go back to their homes after the end-semester exams.
Parichay Yadav, a fourth-semester LLB student, explained, “DU is a central university where students from all over the country come to study. Now, as they were informed about the deferment only 12 hours before the exam, many of them would have to reschedule their tickets. It is highly inconvenient for the students who come from different states.”
Students from the university’s Faculty of Law also informed that their academic session was marred with delays, irregular classes and other issues.
EdexLive tried to reach out to the University of Delhi for an official statement. The copy will be updated once we get a response.
