By IANS,
New Delhi : The Bar Council of India (BCI) has no role in legal education in schools and universities, Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal said Thursday, replying to the council’s charge that he was “interfering” in their profession.
“The Bar Council’s role in legal education is limited to law colleges. Law education in schools and universities has nothing to do with the Bar Council,” Sibal said while speaking about the HRD ministry’s achievements in the last 100 days.
The BCI last week questioned the ministry’s authority to set up a legal round-table and an expert group to take decision on how to make legal education more inclusive. The council said it was the only legally constituted body to formulate policies regarding legal education.
Sibal said: “Law is an integral part of every human activity. Cannot we think of a BA degree in law in our universities? This is not LLB. After such a degree, a student can study anything, lets say bio-science, medicine or anything else.”
“The world is fast changing. Cannot we have a diploma in issues related to WTO agreements?” he argued.
Sibal has already held a legal round-table earlier this week. “We have no intention of interfering in legal practice. We will take the Bar Council of India’s help in our legal education matters.”