Prof slams Mumbai University nod letting law colleges hold exams

A senior and respected part-time faculty of the prestigious Government Law College, Shamim Dalvi, has written a strongly worded letter to the Mumbai University, Vice Chancellor, Dr Suhas Pednekar. Criticising its move to allow law colleges to conduct exams for the V to VIII in the five year law course and I to IV of three year law course, at college level.

In his letter sent on June 19, a copy of which is with DNA, Dalvi says "University has washed its hands of the load of conducting law exams, due to the all round condemnation of the fiasco of non-declaration of results (for which the University alone is responsible), the remedy resorted to is worse than the disease."

Dalvi has raised fears of large scale malpractices which would eventually affect quality of the legal education. "The university has set in motion the gradual and certain decimation of the quality of legal education and institutionalised or legitimised individual or personalised corruption as the students, have easy access to examiners who will barter favours for illegal gratification. This in turn will ensure that the products (students) churned out are bereft of knowledge and will go out as having purchased their qualification."

The University has 48 affiliated law colleges, with only 193 teachers approved for assessment work. To put an end to the perennial delays in announcing law results, principals from the law faculty had proposed to conduct all exams except the final-year ones at college level.

However, Dalvi feels "The varsity has paved the way to hell through its regressive, dangerous, self defeating and unwise proposal."