NLSIU Students Demand Bar Council Apology Over NALSAR Action And Oppose Manan Kumar Mishra Attending Convocation
A major legal education controversy has deepened as the graduating class, current students, and alumni of the National Law School of India University in Bengaluru issued a joint declaration targeting the apex regulator of the legal profession. The collective action follows directives issued by the Bar Council of India against the graduating batch of NALSAR University of Law in Hyderabad. Hundreds of student signatories along with over a hundred alumni condemned the statutory body for attempting to suppress peaceful dissent within public academic institutions.
The dispute originated after a section of NALSAR students raised formal objections regarding the choice of Chief Guest for their annual convocation. In response to the student representation, the statutory regulatory body issued directives instructing state bar councils to withhold the professional advocate enrollment of NALSAR graduates. The regulator also demanded an internal inquiry to identify faculty members and students involved in drafting the petition. Although the restrictive orders were subsequently withdrawn following widespread criticism from legal experts and academic bodies, law students across institutions maintained that the initial execution of the order demonstrated an illegal overreach of statutory authority.
In their joint statement, the Bengaluru law school community termed the regulator's actions an unconstitutional infringement on the fundamental right to free speech and expression. The signatories argued that the Advocates Act does not grant the regulatory council any power to arbitrarily block qualified law graduates from entering the legal profession or conduct administrative witch-hunts against university faculty. The statement formally called upon the regulator to issue an unconditional apology to NALSAR students and faculty while demanding transparency regarding the protocol governing official communications issued by senior council leadership.
Extending full solidarity to their peers in Hyderabad, the Bengaluru student body expressed strong disapproval regarding the upcoming convocation proceedings. The statement registered firm opposition against Bar Council of India Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra attending their degree distribution ceremony without taking responsibility for the regulatory pushback against student dissent. The graduating students highlighted that inviting regulatory leaders to confer degrees after public displays of hostility towards student expression diminishes the dignity of the academic milestone.
The widespread student opposition highlights growing friction between statutory regulatory authorities and major national law universities over student autonomy and institutional governance. While official regulatory leadership expressed regret over the anxieties caused to law students, the collective student body continues to demand formal structural accountability and explicit guarantees against future regulatory interference in academic dissent.