Pune: ILS Law College is working towards getting the university status by next academic year, said professor Deepa Paturkar, the officiating principal.
“We have forwarded the application to authorities and the state government to grant permission to upgrade our college into a university,” said prof Paturkar on Tuesday as the ILS (Indian Law Society) Law College Pune begins its centenary year celebrations.
Founded on June 20, 1924, ILS Law College is one of the prominent law institutes in the country.
The institute was initially affiliated to the then Bombay University with campus at Amphy Theatre of Fergusson College. The “Law College” was named “ILS Law College” in 1980 to distinguish it from other law colleges set up in the city.
“We submitted the application to the state government around seven months ago. The queries raised by the authorities were also provided. If the state government approves the proposal, then ILS will be the first law university in Maharashtra,” she said.
“Nanasaheb Gharpure was the founder principal and honorary secretary of the ILS Law College. Later, the foundation of Saraswati Building was laid after the land was acquired after a struggle. Today, the building houses a three-storied library, conference hall and administrative offices. Our library is perhaps one of the best in the country with a collection of 55,000 books and periodicals and it subscribes to 110 Indian and foreign journals along with 13 online legal databases.
“The Laxmi Building that has the auditorium and classrooms was constructed later. A sports complex with facilities like cricket, tennis courts, swimming pool and gymnasium were added later.”
{{/usCountry}}“The Laxmi Building that has the auditorium and classrooms was constructed later. A sports complex with facilities like cricket, tennis courts, swimming pool and gymnasium were added later.”
{{/usCountry}}The principal said that as the college touches a milestone, the next century holds opportunities in shaping young minds, driving innovation, and making a positive impact on society.
Rich history
The early days of the Indian Law Society’s Law College dates back to 1902 when JR Gharpure and PB Singhe decided to put in place a regularised system of imparting legal education.
“The New Law Class, Bombay” was started in 1903. After running the class for five years, a need arose to start a regular law college with affiliation to a university. Gharpure conducted classes at the Fergusson College Law Class from 1908 with more than 125 students on roll. Within a few weeks, the institution was disaffiliated from the University of Bombay.
With the present form of teaching running for more than fifteen years, the “Indian Law Society” was inaugurated on March 4, 1923 with Dr Sir Narayan Rao C Chandawarkar as its first president.
It was proposed at the inaugural meeting to set up a private law college in Pune. After preliminary preparations, the law college formally commenced operation on the June 20, 1924, under the banner of Indian Law Society.
It was then known as the “Poona Law College”. The law society acquired 154 acres and the first building “Saraswati Building” was built in 1935. The foundation stone was laid by the late Srinivas Shastri on January 7, 1935.