Supreme Court to Review Law Student Attendance Rules

The Supreme Court will review a Delhi High Court decision that prevents law colleges from barring students from exams due to minimum attendance issues. This follows a tragic case from 2016 where a law student died by suicide after being barred from exams. The court seeks input from the Bar Council of India.

The Supreme Court has agreed to revisit the contentious issue of mandatory attendance requirements for law students, following a challenge to a Delhi High Court verdict which stated that students can't be excluded from exams due to attendance shortfalls. The ruling comes in light of a past incident that highlighted the severe implications of stringent attendance policies.

A bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta, and Vijay Bishnoi noted concerns that relaxing attendance norms might lead educational hostels to become mere 'boarding and lodging facilities'. Despite these apprehensions, the Supreme Court has opted not to implement an immediate suspension of the high court's decision as it prepares to review the case further.

This legal discourse traces back to the heartbreaking case of Sushant Rohilla, a law student who took his life in 2016 after being barred from semester exams due to insufficient attendance. The Delhi High Court had argued against overly rigid attendance standards that could harm mental well-being. It also prompted the Bar Council and other educational bodies to reassess attendance policies, encouraging credits for educational activities beyond traditional classroom attendance.