Who asked NLSIU students to publicly invite CJI for convocation? NALSAR SBC asks

The Student Bar Council (SBC) at NALSAR, Hyderabad has said that National Law School of India University's (NLSIU) administration was not behind the demand that its graduating students issue a public letter re-inviting Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant to their now-cancelled convocation.

The claim came in a statement expressing solidarity with the graduating batch of NLSIU over the cancellation of their convocation.

NALSAR's SBC acknowledged NLSIU's statutory design under which the CJI serves as ex-officio Chancellor and convenes the convocation. The statement noted that NLSIU students had in fact agreed to the CJI's presence at the ceremony.

It said that students were later asked to issue a public letter "re-inviting" the CJI, a condition added only after that agreement. This development has been condemned.

On who made the demand, the SBC said that the actual sequence of events could only be clarified by direct stakeholders. However, it was made clear to the Council that NLSIU's administration itself had not asked for such a letter, the SBC's statement said. The NLISU's students' rejection of the demand for such a letter is what led to the convocation being called off, the statement added.

The SBC further said that if this demand was made from the CJI's office, it would be unfortunate since the office would then have prioritised public discourse over the students' interests.

"We also want to note that if such request of a ‘public letter’ was made by the office of the CJI, it is incredibly unfortunate as the office of the CJI apparently preferred creating suitable public discourse in the interest of their office over the interests of the students. We salute the principled stance of the students of the Batch of 2026 when they rejected this request and stood by their earlier act of dissent," it said.

The SBC added that it was "not lost upon" it that these events followed the solidarity NLSIU students and alumni had extended to NALSAR during the Bar Council of India (BCI) controversy earlier this month. Over 700 members of the NLSIU community objected to BCI Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra and CJI attending NLSIU's own convocation.

"While we refrain from commenting on the contested versions of what led to such an impasse, it cannot be emphasised enough that a convocation marks a poignant milestone, recognising years of learning, growth, hard work, and the beginning of a new chapter in a student’s life. Snatching this opportunity from students, which would have enabled them to savour this moment with family and friends, is cruel. Students had already made arrangements to attend the convocation, including arrangements for their families," it said.

The controversy stemmed from circulars issued by BCI Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra ordering that the enrolment of the students of the graduating batch of NALSAR Hyderabad be halted. This, after NALSAR students objected to CJI Surya Kant's proposed presence at their convocation. After a backlash from the legal community, Mishra withdrew his decision.

The students of NLSIU then threw their weight behind NALSAR students. Over 700 members of the NLSIU community signed a statement objecting to Mishra and CJI Surya Kant attending NLSIU's convocation.

CJI Kant, as Chancellor of NLSIU, later met the students to understand their position. After the meeting, batches were asked to vote on whether they would attend a convocation with the CJI present, without protest or disruption. Students were also assured that Mishra would not attend the function. The vote, held on August 23, showed majority support for that arrangement, given that the alternative was cancellation.

However, 2 days later, the terms changed. On August 25, the batches were told they would also need to issue a public statement inviting the CJI for the convocation to take place. Since an agreement could not be reached on that, the convocation for the graduating batch of NLSIU was cancelled.

The NALSAR SBC also pointed to the CJI's own observations in the NALSAR matter, where he had said students have a right to protest and should be allowed to do so peacefully.

The SBC said that it remained unclear whether the cancellation of NLSIU's convocation was solely a result of the NLSIU administration's actions. However, the circumstances pointed to acts of omission and a lack of care towards the students, said the statement. It has criticised the administration's decision to cite "unavoidable circumstances" as the reason for the convocation's cancellation. Such a move fell short of the transparency expected of a legal institution, the SBC said. It added that other options did not appear to have been explored.

[Read Statement]