[COVID-19] Kerala High Court directs MG University to adopt alternatives to compulsory internship for law students

The Kerala High Court on Thursday directed Mahatma Gandhi (MG) University to adopt appropriate alternate measures in place of the compulsory internship requirement for law students in view of the COVID-19 pandemic restrictions (Jomol John Vs. Bar Council of India and ors.).Single-judge Justice PB Suresh Kumar passed the judgement on a petition filed by students of Government Law College, Ernakulam, highlighting the difficulties faced by them in completing the required internship period due to COVID-19 situation. The Court applied the doctrine of necessity to direct MG University "to adopt appropriate other measures which it may feel adequate to satisfy the requirements of the course in the place of the period of internship not undergone by the petitioners and others who have been admitted for the Five Year integrated Law Degree course during the academic year 2016 - 2017. This shall be done as expeditiously as possible, at any rate, within six weeks".Advocate Amrin Fathima, appearing for the petitioners, had submitted that the petitioners are students who joined the Five Year integrated B.com. LLB (Hons) course in 2016-17 at the Government Law College, Ernakulam which is affiliated with MG University. This course was supposed to be completed in 2020-21. .Fathima stated that as per the Rules of Legal Education framed by BCI, internship is part of the curriculum and each registered student should complete minimum of 20 weeks internship during the period of legal studies. However, the Rules also clarify that internship in any year cannot be for a continuous period exceeding four weeks.She submitted that the petitioners could therefore only complete around 12 weeks of internship as for the last two years, no appropriate institutions permitted internship during the course of COVID pandemic and accompanying lockdown restrictions. Fathima contended that since the petitioners are still attending online classes before their final exams, they will not be able to complete 8 more weeks of internship before the culmination of the course. Unless the internship requirement is not relaxed, the petitioners will not be able to complete the course, she added..Standing Counsel for BCI, Advocate Rajit, indicated that BCI sympathises with the grievances aired by the students. He declared that the MG University, to which the college is affiliated, is free to adopt any other measures in place of the internship requirement. He also agreed that even online internships would be hard for students and institutions to adjust to as the pandemic has pushed everyone to adapt too quickly to the digital world and the same may not be possible for students from all backgrounds..However, Advocate Ashok Cherian, appearing for MG University, contended that as long as the Rules of Legal Education remain intact, the University might not be at liberty to adopt any other method to satisfy the requirements of the five year course. He also admitted that the University has not framed any regulations of its own and is only following the Rules prescribed by BCI as curriculum for its course. .The Court, after examining all arguments, opined that the Rules of Legal Education, framed by BCI under Section 7(1)(h) of the Advocates Act, 1961, is only suggestive of the means of promoting legal education. Ultimately, the Court held that it is up to the universities to prescribe the curriculum and the methods of evaluation. ."Insofar as the Rules prescribed by the Bar Council of India is only suggestive of the ways and means to promote legal education, according to me, the same will not stand in the way of the University making appropriate changes in the curriculum in contingencies of the instant nature, especially when the competent authority for prescription of the standards of legal education, viz, Bar Council of India itself has permitted the University to do so. Further, since the law does not contemplate a vacuum, doctrine of necessity is applied to tide over situations of the instant nature," the Court said. .Therefore, the Court disposed the petition and directed MG University to expeditiously adopt any methods, other than internship, that it feels may satisfy the requirements of the course ..[Read Judgment]