04 March,2017 06:48 AM IST | | Pallavi Smart
Stays a notification of the Bar Council of India that had fixed an age limit for it
Supreme Court. Pic/PTI
The Supreme Court on Friday stayed a notification of the Bar Council of India (BCI) that had decided on an age limit for law education.
The BCI had, at its general body meeting, fixed the upper limit of 22 years for the five-year LLB course, and 45 years for the three-year graduate course.
The SC said, "You talk about promoting legal education, and on other hand, you fix age limit."
The Court was hearing petitions filed by CLAT (Common Law Admission Test) aspirants challenging the age-limit clause introduced by the BCI.
Welcoming the move, Dr Ashok Yende, director of University of Mumbai's Law Academy, said, "I applaud the decision of the Supreme Court to strike down the age limit for law education. Now, any person of any age can take admission to pursue law course. The decision of the BCI was arbitrary and without application of mind."
Sachin Pawar, president of the Students' Law Council, which had filed a petition in the Bombay High Court against the age bar, said, "This is a welcome decision. It is going to help several students of different backgrounds, who have been studying law. We hope that the Maharashtra Common Entrance Test Cell soon takes cognisance of the decision and implements it in the new admission procedure, so that students don't suffer due to last-minute changes."
The final hearing in this case will be in the third week of July.
