The Bar Council of India (BCI) here on Wednesday decided to hold a protest rally in November against the Centre”s decision to take away the BCI”s power to regulate legal education, and the Higher Education Commission of India (Repeal of University Grants Commission) Bill 2019.
Over 100,000 lawyers are likely to take part in the protest.
The Higher Education Commission of India (Repeal of University Grants Commission) Bill 2019 repeals the University Grants Commission Act 1956 and proposes the Higher Education Commission of India (HECI), which will maintain academic standards in higher education by specifying learning outcomes for courses, specifying eligibility criteria for the Vice-Chancellors and ordering closure of institutions that fail to adhere to minimum standards.
The BCI is opposed to the move as it abrogates its power to regulate legal education, conferred by the Advocates Act, and hands it over to the HECI. To finalise the strategy, the BCI will hold a meeting on October 12.
It has sent representations to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Home Minister Amit Shah, explaining reasons for its opposition to inclusion of legal education in the Bill.
“The BCI will hold protest rallies in all state capitals and ”gherao” Parliament during the Winter Session, if the Bill is moved and the Advocates Act is not excluded from its ambit,” said BCI Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra.
The legal education couldn”t be allowed to be regulated by outsiders, social workers or teachers, Mishra added.
He said last year too it was proposed to introduce such a bill, but it was dropped after the intervention of the Prime Minister.
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