The Kerala High Court ruled that students who passed through NIOS can apply for integrated law courses. The Court stated that NIOS certificates are fully valid and recognised by all universities.
Kochi: The Kerala High Court has recently said that students who have passed their Secondary and Senior Secondary Examinations from the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS) can apply for admission to integrated law degree courses. Justice N. Nagaresh made this important observation while cancelling the decision of the Principal of S.N.
Law College, Poothotta, Thripunithura. The Principal had refused to admit a candidate who had secured a primary allotment in the merit list, just because the candidate had completed his basic qualifications through NIOS.
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The High Court carefully looked at the rules set by the Bar Council of India (BCI) for admission to law courses. It was found that Rule 5(b) of the BCI states that for taking admission in integrated law degree courses, a student must have passed the Senior Secondary School Course (Plus Two) or its equivalent either from a recognised university in India or abroad, or from a Senior Secondary Board or any other equivalent institution recognised by the Union or State governments, or from an institution in a foreign country recognised by the government of that country. The Court clearly stated that a qualification from NIOS meets these conditions.
While explaining further, the Court noted that the student who had approached the Court had passed the 9th and 10th standard exams through the NIOS scheme.
The Court said,
“The certificate issued by the NIOS is recognised by all universities as per the directions of the Association of Indian Universities. Therefore, it must be treated as evidence that he holds the basic qualification from an autonomous institution under the Union Ministry of Education.”
This means that the qualification obtained from NIOS is valid and should not be questioned when students seek admission to higher education, including law courses.
The Court also pointed out that
the Association of Indian Universities (AIU) has accepted the courses offered by NIOS as equal to those offered by other recognised boards. This allows students who complete their studies through NIOS to use their certificates to get admission into universities across India.
The Court also highlighted that,
according to a statement from NIOS, their academic study centres are mainly schools that are recognised by either national or state education boards.
Further, NIOS informed the Court that it is one of the three national-level education boards in India and is considered at par with other well-known national boards like the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) and the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE).
The Court recorded the submission that
“The secondary/senior secondary certification of the NIOS is recognised by the State government and all State boards across the country.”
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Thus, the Kerala High Court made it clear that a student passing from NIOS is fully eligible to seek admission in integrated law degree programmes. The judgment gives great relief to many students who choose open schooling for various reasons but face hurdles when applying for higher studies.
This decision will now help ensure that NIOS students are treated equally with those from other national and state boards when applying for professional courses like law.
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