‘Reconsider choice’: 450 students of NALSAR urge university not to invite CJI to convocation

A section of students at the NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad, have opposed having Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant as the chief guest at their upcoming convocation. About 450 students of the university from different batches, including the outgoing LLB and LLM batch, have written to the Vice Chancellor, the Registrar and Professors of the university requesting them not to invite the CJI, citing his recent comments with regard to a petition against alleged police excesses during the NEET protests last month. The university has a total of 1400 students. The university is yet to announce the date of convocation or confirm who would be the chief guest. Traditionally, though, the incumbent CJI has been delivering the convocation address at NALSAR for years. 'Uncertainty over ceremony' In light of the students' opposition, there is a chance that the university will scrap the convocation ceremony this year, a faculty member said, pleading anonymity. The first representation to the authorities was sent on July 23 by 70 members of the outgoing batch of LLB students. By July 25, classes of 2027, 2028, 2029, 2030, and 2031, comprising about 380 students, expressed solidarity with the statement and issued their separate letters to the university administration. On July 22, the Supreme Court had declined to initiate suo motu proceedings to take cognizance of alleged police excesses during the July 20 crackdown on student protesters in Delhi. When a lawyer submitted that there was videographic evidence of police brutality, CJI Kant orally declined to examine the videos, saying that the court’s time should not be “wasted”. In their first letter written a day after this comment, the students wrote, “Our concerns arise from the refusal of the Honourable Supreme Court Bench led by the Hon’ble CJI to allow urgent listing of a plea concerning the brutal police action against protestors. A convocation is meant to be a moment where the University’s own values, including a commitment to constitutional rights, access to justice and reasoned engagement with grievances are visibly reflected in the choices it makes. We feel that receiving our degrees from a dignitary whose recent public conduct…appears dismissive of serious allegations of police brutality against protesting citizens sits uncomfortably with what we have been taught to value during our time at NALSAR…We would therefore request the university to strongly reconsider the choice of Chief Guest for this convocation…” In the next couple of days, several students of different batches at NALSAR wrote to the university administration on the same lines. The 2029 passing-out batch wrote, “.We find ourselves in agreement with the concerns articulated by the graduating batch. We also believe that their representation raises questions that extend beyond the immediate interests of one graduating class and instead, concern the Constitutional ethos that Nalsar seeks to embody.” 'Vehement opposition' As per the letter written by the 2028 batch, the students stand in “vehement opposition” to the presence of the current CJI at the convocation. The letter from the 2030 batch of students was more direct in its wording. It read, “As reported on record (CJI made the comments) 'Please don’t waste our time. We don’t have time to watch these videos'. Even in the past, the CJI had made a statement calling youth “parasites and cockroaches attacking the system'. we believe that such conduct from the highest office of justice in India does not embody what our Constitution stands for and does not align with the values NALSAR has stood by throughout its history.” Also read | TISS postpones August 2 convocation at the last minute; CJI Surya Kant was to attend To be sure, the CJI had issued a clarification, saying he had been “misquoted” by sections of the media and that his criticism was directed solely at those who had joined different professions through “fake or bogus degrees”. When The Indian Express reached out to the NALSAR university administration, the V-C was unavailable for comment. A senior member of the faculty, however, said, “The administration has been very tight-lipped about this. There are talks that they could cancel the convocation this time around to prevent further embarrassment to the Chief Justice of India.”