The National Law School of India University (NLSIU) on Saturday conferred 43 gold medals on graduating students from various programmes during its 31st convocation. The medal winners credited the NLSIU for instilling confidence in them and providing a good community for support.
Jwalika Balaji and Vidisha Singh, both from the five-year integrated BA LLB (Honours) programme, were awarded six gold medals each. “I came here as I liked the degree which was a mix of arts and law and as I continued, I fell in love with law, especially family law and human rights. They were the most fulfilling courses I did in the law school combined with the internships in those areas of law,” said Ms. Balaji who hails from Chennai. Her parents work at IIT Madras. She is leaving for Oxford University in England in September for her master’s degree.
Ms. Singh, who is currently working in litigation in Delhi, will be moving to London next year to train at a law firm there. She comes from Mumbai where her father is an engineer and her mother, school teacher. She mentioned that the value of community was her biggest takeaway from the NLSIU. “The legal profession is very communitarian, and everyone is always helping each other out. The NLSIU also emphasises on community and even the ones who leave college can find support back here as well as in alumni circles,” she said.
Two-way learning process for visually challenged student
Anchal Bhateja, a 100% visually impaired student who graduated from the BA LLB (Honours) programme, said while the law school learnt about accessibility from her, she learnt to negotiate for her rights both inside and outside the school, from the law school. “I will take this and try to be a tool of social engineering in the outside world,” she said. While saying that the NLSIU now stands way better in terms of accommodating persons with disabilities than it did five years ago, she said that all higher education institutions should have policies to accommodate students from diverse backgrounds. Currently working at Shardul Amarchand Mangaldas, Ms. Bhateja wants to study further and become an academician.
