Don’t attend class? You can’t appear for exam, Mumbai law college tells eight students | Mumbai news - Hindustan Times
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Don’t attend class? You can’t appear for exam, Mumbai law college tells eight students

Hindustan Times | By, Mumbai
Jun 14, 2017 08:56 AM IST

Mumbai city news: The students asked the Kalamboli police station to file a complaint after the college refused to change its stance

A law college in Kalamboli barred eight first-year LLB students from appearing for one of their second semester examination papers last week, after they failed to meet the institute’s attendance criteria.

This is not the first instance of students being barred from appearing for examinations owing to low attendance.(Photo for representation)
This is not the first instance of students being barred from appearing for examinations owing to low attendance.(Photo for representation)

One of the students from KLE Society’s College of Law said that when the group went to college on May 15, the principal refused to attest their exam hall tickets citing low attendance. He told them they could not appear for their first paper, which was based on the Indian Penal Code.

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This led to an altercation between the principal, students and their parents, who insisted that the college allow the group to appear for the paper, said the student.

When the college refused to budge, the students asked the Kalamboli police station to file a complaint. The college finally attested the students’ hall tickets that afternoon, after the paper had ended. They permitted the students to appear for the rest of the examination, which ended on Tuesday.

This is not the first instance of students being barred from appearing for examinations owing to low attendance. In March last year, 97 TYBCom and 20 TYBA students of Mithibai College in Vile Parle were not allowed to appear for their final examination. Similarly, more than 100 students from Shroff College in Kandivli were also prohibited from taking the tests. These students had taken the matter to court, seeking relief. However, their petition was rejected.

Students from KLE Law College were upset about missing their first paper. “If the college was going to attest the hall tickets anyway, they should have done so in the morning. This would have enabled us to appear for the paper,” said the student.

The students alleged that the college discriminated against them by allowing some of the other attendance defaulters to appear for the test. “The college set an arbitrary benchmark of 60% attendance and anyone who fell short of it was barred from the examination,” said the student.

The rules set by the University of Mumbai require students to attend at least 75% of the lectures and practicals, with a minimum of 50% attendance in each subject. The college can condone an additional 25% absence of a student, if deemed fit.

The college defended its decision, saying the students were routinely informed about their low attendance and were made aware of its consequences. “We put up the defaulters list every month and sent letters to these students. They didn’t even have 50% attendance. We decided to let them appear for rest of the papers owing their persistent pleas,” said Mohammed Saleem Khan, the principal.

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  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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    Musab Qazi is a Trainee Correspondent, covering education. He generally writes about higher education policies in Maharashtra and new trends in the education sector.

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