Breaking News! CLAT 2024: BCI offers to conduct CLAT in regional languages

In an affidavit filed before the Delhi High Court, the BCI offered that it has the mechanism to conduct the exam in regional languages and no deserving candidate should be deprived of giving CLAT on account of his/her inability to be proficient in English.

Breaking News: CLAT 2024: BCI offers to conduct CLAT in regional languages

CLAT 2024: The Bar Council of India (BCI) has said that it can conduct the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) across the country in regional languages. In an affidavit filed before the Delhi High Court, the BCI offered that it has the mechanism to conduct the exam in regional languages and no deserving candidate should be deprived of giving CLAT on account of his/her inability to be proficient in English.

It further contended that it has been holding similar exams like the All India Bar Examination in the most fair and transparent manner. "The Bar Council of India proposes that it may be permitted to constitute the body of experts through its Legal Education Committee, to hold CLAT wherein the Legal Education Committee council involve some sitting and former Hon'ble Judges, noted educationists of legal education and eminent jurists.”

The BCI made its stand clear in a detailed affidavit filed in support of a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) before the Delhi High Court demanding that CLAT should be held in regional languages along with English. It must be noted that a law student had approached the High Court with the PIL. The petition has been filed through Advocates Akash Vajpai and Sakshi Raghav. The BCI as well as the Central government have supported the plea.

Meanwhile, the NLUs have said that while it is not possible to conduct CLAT 2024 in regional languages, the possibility to conduct in more languages can be explored in the future. The High Court will now hear the petition on October 6.

The BCI added that "knowledge or lack of English language does not determine one's intelligence, ability, acumen, dedication, IQ, etc. Therefore, prima facie the exam should be conducted in vernacular languages too. At present, the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution specifies 22 languages Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri, Konkani, Malayalam, Manipuri, Marathi, Nepali, Oriya, Punjabi, Sanskrit, Sindhi, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, Bodo, Santhali, Maithili and Dogri. English does not find mention here, though.”

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