The Lahore High Court has directed all public sector universities in Punjab and law colleges affiliated with them to complete the process of fresh affiliation for offering admissions in five-year programme of LLB within one month. A full bench headed by Chief Justice Mansoor Ali Shah ruled that if affiliation to any college is declined, any admission made would not be considered in accordance with law.
He said the universities while granting fresh affiliation for five-year LLB programme would reconsider the number of seats to be allocated to the respective college. The bench passed this order in identical petitions filed by some students desirous to study law but they were denied admissions for not meeting the minimum age limit of 24 years. The court adjourned further hearing till January 17.
The bench also clarified that 100 seats prescribed under the Pakistan Bar Council Legal Education Rules, 2015, shall not be put into operation till final decision of the petitions and meanwhile, seats already granted to the affiliated colleges at the time of affiliation shall be the seats utilised for the purposes of three-year as well as five year LLB programme.
It is further clarified that as per the legal education rules and the notifications issued by the respective universities, there will be no evening classes. "Admissions granted over and above the allocated seats will be in violation of these orders, therefore, any admission granted in this regard may be reconsidered by the respective universities as well as law colleges," it held.
The bench ruled that the age limit alone is no bar for the purposes of enrolment in LLB five-year or three-year programme, however, if a candidate has already done his BA he will be considered in the three-year programme. Therefore, the bench said, anybody over and above the age of 24 years without holding a BA degree is provisionally eligible to apply for LLB five-year programme.
The bench observed that syllabus for five-year programme approved by the Pakistan Bar Council and adopted by the Punjab University would be followed in all the universities of the province. The bench appointed Ishtiaq Ahmad Chaudhry and Rana Intizar Hussain as representatives of the Pakistan Bar Council and the Punjab Bar Council respectively in "Law Colleges Commission."
The bench directed that the commission shall hold its first meeting under the chairmanship of Advocate General Punjab on December 20 next to verify, by carrying out physical inspection, authenticity of the affiliated law colleges and prepare a list of tuition centers imparting legal education without affiliation.