V. CHITAMBARESH, J.

1. Mr. K. Krishna Menon who was the Principal of the prestigious Madras Law College (now Dr. Ambedkar Government Law College) for 19 long years (1930-1949) used to welcome the freshers as follows:-

"Gentlemen, you are seen here because you cannot be seen elsewhere."

Those were the days when the students sought refuge in the law colleges as they could not succeed in securing admission in other professional colleges owing to their poor academic record. The situation has changed more than half a century down the lane and the law colleges are now the most sought after institutions for the students to pursue their education. This necessarily involves a more serious imparting of education to the students which the Universities and the law colleges in the State are yet to realise.

2. The Writ Petition seeks the implementation of the directions contained in Satheesh Kumar vs. Mahatma Gandhi University, 2015 (4) KLT 151 wherein it has inter alia been held as follows:-

"Therefore the prescription of the minimum hours of lecture classes and holding of tutorials, moot court and seminars by the Bar Council of India is to be scrupulously followed by the Universities. The above exercises are essential to chisel out the best in a law student many of whom are destined to become lawyers, judicial officers, parliamentarians etc. The possible lag in the course is not an excuse for the Universities to commit breach of the statutory rules and the classes cannot also be telescoped.

9. It will be desirable if the Registrar and the Controller of Examinations of the Universities assure themselves that the necessary exercises as above are completed by each of the Colleges. Such a subjective satisfaction can be arrived at on the basis of the inputs from the Principal/Head of the Department of Law in the various Colleges. It is only after being convinced of the requisite number of lecture classes, tutorials, moot court and seminars can the examination for each of the Semester be scheduled. The minimum hours stipulated by the Bar Council of India should have been completed before the commencement of the examinations for each of the Semester."

The above decision was rendered following Bar Council of India vs. Aparna Basu Mallick, (1994) 2 SCC 102 and Bar Council of India vs. Dayanand College of Law and Others, (2007) 2 SCC 202.

3. The Bar Council of India has in this regard framed Rules of Legal Education, 2008 and Chapter II thereof deals with the standards of Professional Legal Education. Rule 10 of the Rules pertains to the Semester System in the unitary and integrated courses being conducted by the Universities and is to the following effect:-

"10. Semester system

The course leading to either degree in law, unitary or on integrated double degree, shall be conducted in semester system in not less than 15 weeks for unitary degree course or not less than 18 weeks in double degree integrated course with not less than 30 class-hours per week including tutorials, moot room exercise and seminars provided there shall be at least 24 lecture hours per week. Provided further that in case of specialized and/or honours law courses there shall be not less than 36 class-hours per week including seminar, moot court and tutorial classes and 30 minimum lecture hours per week.

Provided further that Universities are free to adopt trimester system with appropriate division of courses per trimester with each of the trimester not less than 12 weeks."

(Emphasis supplied)

There has to be 36 class hours per week including seminars, moot court and tutorial classes and 30 minimum lecture hours per week in the case of honours law courses. The writ petition concerns the honours law courses (BBA-LLB and B.Com-LLB) conducted by the Cochin University of Science and Technology ['the CUSAT' for short] at Ernakulam. 36 class hours per week spanning over 18 weeks for such a double degree integrated course works out to 648 class room hours for a single semester.