Chief Justice of India (CJI) Chandrachud advocated for the expansion of legal education to remote regions and non-English speaking areas. Recognizing the need for inclusivity and accessibility in legal training, his remarks highlight the importance of ensuring equitable opportunities for aspiring lawyers across diverse linguistic and geographical backgrounds.
On Friday, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath stressed the importance of upholding the rule of law as essential for effective governance. In Prayagraj (UP), Chief Justice of India Justice DY Chandrachud advocated for the expansion of legal education to remote rural areas, ensuring that students from smaller towns have equitable access to becoming lawyers.
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Speaking at the inauguration event of the Dr Rajendra Prasad National Law University here,
“Technology has given us the ability to reach out to far-flung students. Despite developments in legal education, the contemporary legal education system favours only English-speaking urban children.”
Chandrachud said,
He said, “A survey conducted on diversity in five law universities shows that children from diverse backgrounds are unable to get admission in these universities due to not being able to speak English.”
Chandrachud, who was the chief guest of the programme, said,
“Today, because of Bhashini software, we have translated about 36,000 judgments of the Supreme Court from 1950 to 2024. Its objective is to make these decisions for every citizen who does not know English and practices law in the district courts.”
He said that even such opportunities as moot courts, internships and competitions were traditionally designed keeping in mind children coming from elite families.
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“Law colleges and universities should design it keeping in mind children coming from diverse backgrounds,” he said.
The CJI also appealed to the administration to keep the medium of instruction to be Hindi, so that the best students from Uttar Pradesh become the best lawyers.
He said, “Since the Indian Independence movement to the Constitution making process and to contemporary Indian politics, lawyers have significantly contributed to nation building.
“Lawyers play a crucial and multi-faceted role in society, contributing to the functioning of the legal system and promoting justice. They represent individuals and entities ensuring that their rights are protected. This includes criminal defence, civil litigation and advocacy for various legal issues.”
He added, “The role of lawyers includes the representation of the marginalised and vulnerable communities, ensuring that they have a voice in the legal system.”
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“The rule of law is essential for good governance. Under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, we tried to establish good governance in Uttar Pradesh in the last six-seven years. Bar and Bench always supported in establishing the good governance model of U.P,” he said.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Justice Manoj Misra of the Supreme Court, Chief Justice of Allahabad High Court Justice Arun Bhansali, Uttar Pradesh Advocate General Ajay Kumar Mishra and University Vice-Chancellor Usha Tandon also addressed the gathering.
The Chief Minister said the common man continues to have strong faith in the judiciary and stressed on the importance of strengthening the pillars of democracy.
If public confidence in democracy is shaken, then no one can stop the common man from taking to the streets, he said.
“When the Constitution of the country was being prepared, there was a long discussion regarding the Preamble. At that time, Baba Saheb Bhim Rao Ambedkar emphasised that our challenge lay not in merely expanding or concluding the Constitution.”
“Our government has done a lot of work in the interest of the advocates of Uttar Pradesh and will do so in future too,” he said.
He said the Constitution of India played a pivotal role in unifying the nation from all corners, fostering unity from North to South and from East to West. Moreover, he laid stress on its global impact, inspiring democratic progress worldwide.
