The deadline for applications is closed - so seems unlikely that MS will be "tapped" now. Also, only one person has said that she has applied, we don't know if a large number of people have from abroad, and even with her we do not know if she will join (assuming if she is selected).

GSB has applied. Though not stranged that KDR has - he has 6 years as VC, and Jaiswal as 10 years. There are also rumours that Bimpa has applied, and so has Kamla Sankran.

Moronic rumour spread by jobless people. The more relevant question to ask is whether more NLUs will appoint alumni VCs after NLSIU and NLUD. T

Kian/LI: Please complete your investigation into the real story of the day. After the recent fiasco in Maharashtra, word is that Modi/Shah are replacing Governor Koshyari with Professor Dr. Chockalingam Raj Kumar to reinstate constitutional morality in the "Raj" Bhawan. That's great, of course, for Maharashtra but where does that leave JGLS? That is where Dr. Mrinal Satish comes in, being 'tapped' for the role as I type this.

Thanks, Kian. Check, you must. Ask CRK for his comment. And do a story on it. It won't entirely be without precedent because this story too stems from wild speculative comments on this website.

By the way, have you read: abovethelaw.com/2016/04/a-farewell-to-comments/

Inspired?

Are you on dope, and is Kian on dope to promise to check on what such trolls say? WTF would BJP install a relatively young academic working at a university run by a family of pro-Congress industrialists who have even been MPs and MLAs under Congress? Having said that, it'll be fun if Kian does checkup.

Kian: "Hello Professor Kumar, I am Mr Kian Ganz from Legally India. Will you be the next Maharashtra governor?"
Kumar: "Which ch****a is this calling?"

Er..maybe in a parallel universe where Rahul Gandhi becomes PM and appoints Naveen Jindal as a minister.

I have reported this comment for obvious trolling and hope LI takes it down. Often gossip mentioned on LI turns out to be true, but this is BS from a troll.

How a person having 10 years exp was appointed for a position requiring 30 years exp? The writ wad filed rightly. The cj had power to relax the norm that should have been done in the advertisement so many people could have applied. Now the outcome of the writ has became apprent so a face saving move is made.
Neither is he eligible for nlud vc post. He was made prof only 2 to 3 years ago while the ugc rule requires 10 years as professor for vcship. It is laughable to see (in comments) many people these days saying abt people who do not meet the basic elegibility conditions "he is not interested". Nothing against these people they r competent but must first meet the conditions set by the appropriate bodies or change them first in the advertisement for a public office.

Just one clarification. The UGC rules also allow for relaxation of the ten year period for candidates deemed suitable by the concerned authority/university/governing body etc. Now you may argue that there should be suitable norms making such suitability an objective matter. That I agree with too. But not that the UGC requires every VC to have been professor for ten years without exception.

One who has nt been a prof for 10 years can b appointed but that means comparable exp for example justice nn mathur was not a prof for 10 years however he cud be appointed vc. The discretion that committee can consider a suitable candidate does not mean that one with 3 years profship can be considered. If such sweeping powers can be given then let everyone apply n allow d Committee to select a suitable candidate.

Actually, that's exactly what happens. Anyone can apply. The committee is free to reject any candidature if it feels such candidature is not eligible or not suitable. Just like it may accept another if deemed suitable by the committee.

It's clear that u have not seen any adv. for vcship. One may apply without fulfilling d conditions but such person is bound to b rejected and that is what happens usually.

I didn't know we were comparing the respective depths of our involvement in or prior exposure to administrative appointments at universities. I might have been tempted to 'dazzle' you with my credentials had I known. Since I didn't, I guess I'd have to do with logic alone. You seem to have accepted the facts that I stated myself, so not sure how you are using those to support any different view. As for the 'bound to be rejected' part, that only reveals your ignorance. I'd suggest you read carefully the discretionary mandate given to both the search committee as well as the executive council, to say nothing of the Chancellor. Then consider all the possible interpretations of such power. Then re-engage if you still wish to.

All well and good. But the NLUD website says SKDR is already at NLUD "on deputation". Sign of things to come?
nludelhi.ac.in/pep-fac-new-pro.aspx?Id=2115

SKDR or PSJ is going to get the position. There's not a single thing the students or other people with vested interests can do about it. Academics who have shifted to foreign universities and clueless about contemporary Indian legal education scene can't be simply transplanted at the top of an institution. That's like having your cake and eating it too.

Every one needs to work hard for fullfilling his dreams. If he has worked hard he is paid a handsome amount of more than 2 lacs per month.

Downvotes by jealous students of other NLUs.

Kian any news of TNNLU VC race?? Have any of the ant-Sudhir lobby at NLSIU applied? What about Arun?

As long as they don’t force the attendance issue, I am absolutely happy with whoever is currently heading my institute. Naam yaad nahin...

Dear god one hopes not. FM is doing a fine job.

FM is currently in his second term as NALSAR VC which is due to finish in March/April 2022. It is highly improbable that he will be given a third term. So this question should be asked in 2 years from now.

Sorry, but the students should have acted much earlier. A whole year passed until the notification of the 10-year advertisement. No protest was organised during the interim admin's tenure. The SC was not approached.

If Mamata insisted on a Bengali VC, then why did students not propose Dev Gangjee from Oxford, Antara Haldar from Cambridge, Sapatarshi Bandopadhyay from Osgoode Hall, Shubhajit Basu from Leeds, Navajyoti Samanta from Sheffield, or even various people at Jindal? Or Arghya Sengupta pulled out of Vidhi?

Can anybody share the biodata of SKD Rao if there is any such thing.... unable to understand on what basis VCs of NLSIU are selected, people who do not have established teaching or research base and who are disastrous in academics have been made VCs at NLUs and they screw teachers who are strong in teaching and research since they do not have either

Lol VC hiring is done on the same basis most hiring is done in India- especially in the legal system - caste and tribe and nepotism. Would be foolish to look for the fig leaf of reasoning as opposed to confronting the .... staring right at you.

Even with NLS alum - it’s just a different tribe winning for once.

By playing eenie meenie miney mo.

You are right, but unless NLUs unite and demand reforms in the VC appointment process nothing will happen.

What rubbish- these people don’t even want to come back!

Which is what a person said on LI about Srividhya a few weeks ago. I can retrieve the comment if you wish.

Exactly. [...] "I'm not keen on returning to India, happy being an academic in America" spiel during the NLS VC saga is so hilarious in retrospect. People think that [...] didn't apply for NLS VC thinking either that no alumnus stood a realistic shot or that the whole process was rigged in favour of Sudhir (which it was). If its the former, then seems like sour grapes now.

Besides it’s a different thing to come back as a prof from university of Oklahoma and as one at the university of oxford. Both are no doubt good schools - but teaching at oxford is the equivalent of winning an academic lottery- not something easy to give up.

She left Oklahoma aged ago and is now at Texas A&M, which is a renowned university with one of the highest endowments, due to its science and tech departments. And FYI many Oxford profs have left for less prestigious colleges in the US as professor salaries in the US are higher.

Bah - whatever. Texas A&M also ain’t the same as oxford. Good but not the same. And NLUs Won’t pay more than oxford either. So- bah.

Plus the pollution. Don't forget that. It deserves at least two bahs all by itself.

Texas A&M law school didn’t even make the ranking list for US news rankings before 2015. It’s 83rd now- world renowned and all is a bit much.
Yes their tech and science programmes are good- but that means next to nothing when it’s a law school appointment we’re talking about.
She’s okay - I have no real quarrel with rankings and stuff - I think most rankings are pointless. But if you’re relying on rankings to say oxford and Texas are the same - they simply aren’t.

Idiot, their law school only started in 2015! Shows how little you know. They acquired Texas Wesleyan College (an unranked , little known law school) and cracked the top 100 of USNWR rankings in just 1 year or so. And top 10 in IP.

NLU Assam students should become proactive and lobby for Shubhankar Dam to be appointed as the next VC. Even if he takes a two-year sabbatical from the UK and becomes VC for just this short period, he can bring about important changes. It will also be a boost in reputation for NLU Assam.

He won’t do it though- might as well throw your tuition money down the drain.

At NLU Assam current VC is given 3 years extension till 2022, At CNLU, Patna VC is yet to be appointed, no guarantee until next 6 months, at NLU, odisha new is that SKD Rao was given only one year extension, at NLU, Nagpur the news is that current VC is going to get extension in 2021, at NLU, Trichy it is between Professor Ambrose, Madras University and Prof: Sastry, VC of Ambdekar Law University to be decided in December, At NLU, Delhi the game is among Jaswal, Srividya and Bimal patel

Kian, can you confirm if Bimal Patel applied? The rumours on LI about Srividhya and Jaswal applying proved to be true, but not sure about this rumour. Please also check about TNNLU. Surprised if the NLSIU old guard did not apply.

Cracked the whip how exactly? Not a criticism, I'm genuinely interested to know (and hopefully suggest to our own student body). Is he taking student feedback into consideration and habitual poor performers are being told that their contracts won't be renewed? Has anyone resigned already following that?
Regarding the academic review, how is that done? Are external subject experts being consulted with?
Regarding digitization, do you mean the study material are being scanned? Because they are usually compilation of articles, book chapters etc. Some of that would be in soft copy, but some I'm assuming would have been photocopied from hard copy material.

@Lol: 3 and 5 seem actually objective things. Can't say that about 1 or 2 because you haven't revealed anything concrete about the actual measures. For example, ARC can't be really said to be testing papers against higher standards unless one or more papers have been sent back to be improved. I hope you get what I'm trying to say. It's quite easy to do such exercises superficially, not that I'm saying that's what is happening here. Regarding cracking the whip, that too seems very much like rumour unless people are actually leaving and being replaced with good people. But that will take some time I guess, can't be commented right now.
4 and 6 are TBH really standard stuff. Doesn't really require exceptional VCs, right? A well-active student body can and should do it even. Especially with an already active alumni body like law school's. They do have the best network of all NLUs indisputably.

@Guest:

ARC, I don't mean the StudAd thing that is used for project writing improvement. I mean the body of teachers that review the course outlines offered by each faculty member for the coming term. Now, there are strict guidelines about how courses need to be structured, goals to be identified, and teaching plans to be set out. Earlier only some teachers took this responsibility seriously (Rahul Singh, Kunal, some visiting/guest teachers). The rest just threw in whatever garbage they could think of (most adhocs, some visiting/guest). The latter have been rejected at the stage of course offering itself. This also has a signalling effect, about Point 1. Seeing that higher standards are being demanded, one adhoc submitted a resignation letter, another 2-3 have been told that their contracts are not being renewed. In any case, they're not offering any courses.
As for better teachers, yes it will take time. But its not as though alumni are all incredible. For instance, Prof Pillai (even in his [...] final years before retirement) was leagues ahead of the irresponsible alum they got to teach corp to the 2021 batch. Thankfully, now Rahul Singh has taken it over. CPC/DPC was in a quagmire after Prof Reddy's retirement, with the former judge teaching it for a while - this was definitely not ideal. The course was haphazard and very old school. The new teacher (an alum) is excellent, and looks like he's here to stay.

(4), yes. RVR was completely on board with student-led initiatives. But Sudhir seems to be keen to take a "lead from the front" approach, with the focus on mental wellness. (6) is easier said than done. Glad to see he's taking initiative.

@firstGuest: cracked the whip in many ways:
1. Signalling - that higher standards are required, at every stage. The scammiest ad-hocs will be scared (at the minimum) or actually strive to improve (best case)
2. Student feedback which was meticulously being compiled over the years is being used to assess them, coupled with other methods like sitting in on classes, reviewing coursepacks, seeing published work etc
3. Complete digitisation, yes. The portal has all material needed for the course - articles, book chapters, essays. Earlier, hard copies were complied by the lib/ED based on the teacher's recommendation. Now, the relevant material is uploaded on the portal by the library. Printing is purely optional and at the insistence of individual students only.

Being a student at NLSIU currently, I'd like to say that we need to give the man some time. He hasn't been here for even an entire trimester. He's already brought in changes that were needed. True, the relaxations offered under the regime of RVR are gone and students aren't extremely happy about that. But, he enjoys the confidence of almost every student and we're sure that NLS will only go forward with Sudhir at the helm. There is solid belief that the talk around "falling standards of NLS" under the RVR regime will stop

@Current Student:
He doesn't enjoy the confidence of "almost every student". People are all round frustrated, just that they know they can't complain much (since the recent protest was to get Sudhir) and that it is generally difficult to complain against someone with the credentials of Sudhir (unlike Nandi, Ramesh etc). Some highlights:
1. Shutting down the academic block. Allegedly to save on "electricity costs", but come on. That's the place people chill at. If cost is the issue, then why spend MORE money to create a community space near the library
2. Willy nilly firing of support staff. The janitorial staff at Law School are the most vulnerable, and they've been unceremoniously dismissed to "save money". Lo and behold, only the contractual ones have actual been fired. How convenient. Reduction in security personnel by hiring fewer guards, wow. So much for making the campus a safe space.
3. Timings - citing aforementioned self-created staff shortage in the guards department to bar access through Gates 2 and 3, after 11pm. Now everyone has to enter through Gate 1, after say a late night out.
4. Plan to shut down the field for non-athletic late night recreation
5. Hiring new faculty - he keeps saying its happening, but nothing has been conveyed to the students in this regard
6. Fewer student involvement in decision making, especially in soliciting teachers for seminars and electives.

AND SO ON.
Whatever be the case, its clear that there is widespread anti-Sudhir resentment now.

Fake news and garbage spread by one of the oldies pretending to be a student. I know who. A person famous for throwing tantrums.

Now it seems like he's banning festival celebrations because secularism demands so. Banned Guru Nanak Jayanti events, banned Christmas celebrations and so on.

Didn't even throw a Thanksgiving Party for the students whom he should have thanked for his appointment? How sad! Just think of the size of the turkeys you all missed! But then, why would you need to worship any abstract divine entity when you can simply worship Sudhir instead?

Well, people didn't give Sudhir time before they started hailing him as the Messiah. Some are still doing so. Why should the other side lay off him either for his actions or lack thereof then?

Wow, someone speaking sense. Kick him off the LI board asap. This place is for trolling and baseless speculation, don't you know?

The admin and students of NUSRL Ranchi do not wish to give a statement and publicise the event as it will lead to rumour mongering and loose talk, and also scare CLAT aspirants.

PIL?

Protest for what? It appears that the legal system is taking its course - arrests have been made. Protest must come if the system fails to act in the manner required of it.

Ooh, there's a good troll. You get a pat on the back and a cookie with Rhodes engraved on it.

People should be honest enough to debate on the professors having good teaching and research abilities at NLUs. There are professors who are having far better track record than the current Vice Chancellors of NLUs. If you look into the profiles of current professors at NLSIU/NALSAR/NUJS/NLUD/NLIU you would get to know the real abilities of people. Moreover, it is not just about getting some scholar ship of fellowship what is the outcome of the such fellowship is the moot point. there are people who have done far better in research and teaching without such fellowships and popularity. There are people who are doing their work silently without any popularity or propaganda. Let us introspect ourselves and be honest in what we look at what we hear and what we say, India needs this more importantly national law schools

Most of what the country needs to hear and know won't be found in SCOPUS indexed journals hidden behind paywall or sub standard UGC listed journals that nobody actually reads. Legal academics seldom write for others to read. It's mostly a self-congratulatory and self-validating exercise and/or career move.

So much time wasting - this ranking obsession is really a sickness. Just do your work and others will to and let the work speak for itself.

But then what would happen to the comments section here?

Well - it can still be a good source of gossip - but these rankings and tiers are just pissing contests with no social benefit. Also it’s not like anyone is ever going to agree on ranking.

They would. Everybody would agree that NLU Goa would be the number one destination once it starts.

@31: IRCTC contractor, what's with you and tiers?

Buddy, you should know that NLSIU, NALSAR and NLUD are rarely criticised by LI.

Silence! How dare you raise questions over the supposedly #2 rank NLU soon to be #1 with supposedly 20 NLU alumni teaching and the best admin.

I have no love lost for GSB. It'd be horrible if he becomes the NLUD VC. And these are very serious allegations, which if true, deserve the strongest response. BUT: this tendency within NLUD faculty to file or get filed cases against each other cannot be good for the institution. Any student or faculty at NLUD can tell you who is behind this case - JSM. Same chap who was behind the MS litigation as well. This guy is also behind a score of RTI/audit applications against many other faculty members, esp those who run well funded centres. Accountability is very important, but at some point, this kind of constant complaining turns into harassment. The effects are already to be seen. NLUD has turned away so many well qualified candidates for ad hoc positions because any exercise of admin discretion is immediately challenged with letters up and down the chain from CJI onwards. Whoever the next VC is, if she or he has to face this kind of constant complaining about every admin decision, then we can wish innovation goodbye. It'll stultify the place. I am wary of encouraging this kind of people, even when the person at the receiving end in this instance is GSB.

So what else is a faculty member to do if he's trying to point out admin's high handedness or arbitrary decisions? It's unlikely admin would pay any heed to any complaint about itself. Everything that starts with cutting through red tape can also end up being nepotism or corruption. So one must look into the actual allegations and their truth and not only the person behind those.

Absolutely agree. That is why I said accountability is important. But if an administrator is facing constant challenges to every decision, that also cannot be good for the institution. In such a situation, it becomes important to see who is challenging each decision and what vested interests that person may have. That is why even in PILs courts want to know, quite apart from the merits of the case, that the person does not have any conflicts or other motivations in filing the case. In this present petition, it is quite strange that this petition, which claims illegalities occurred in 2014, was filed in the middle of the VC selection process. It'll be a sorry day for NLUD if GSB does become the VC. But, his candidature should be evaluated on merits, not on the basis of motivated litigation (if this is indeed motivated). Ultimately, the solution to these problems is not about individuals, but about systemic change - (1) utmost transparency and (2) getting rid of rules that lead to red tape in the first place. (1) can be done at the level of any law school. (2) involves more protracted negotiations, including with the UGC. That is why administrators who have to work with these rules may relax them, exercise discretion, or give the rules novel interpretations - all of which are needed for agile decision-making, but all of which open them up to litigation. Anyway, my broader point was that JSM is not the hero we need or the hero we deserve. His habit of taking 2 and 2 and making 8 out of it is well known and quite dangerous. I hear some faculty members - coming from the same stable as JSM - are already saying that the Professor requirement for VC selection implies Professor as per UGC guidelines and therefore Srividya will not be eligible since she does not meet the UGC requirements. I don't know SR and I don't know if she will be a good VC. But again, this kind of stultified interpretation which in NLUD seem to lead to litigation and allegations of nepotism, corruption etc, cannot be good for the institution.

JSM is right. If Srividhya is applying for a position in India, she should meet Indian qualifications. Here it takes 10-15 years after Phd for someone to become a professor and then 10 years on top of that to become a VC. In other countries, even law graduates without llm and phd can become professors directly. It is not fair to faculty in India if these people can come in as VCs when more senior people here have to keep waiting their turn. It may also be noted that Srividhya has said that she was "tapped up" for the position. This suggests that the selection committee invited her to apply. How can they do that? If they have done it for her, who else have they done it for? Does this not reek of nepotism? Does this mean that the selection is pre-decided? Then the process is just a farce. This is a public post not someone's personal property. This kind of nepotism should definitely be challenged, and thankfully we can trust people like JSM to do it.

Shastry is all about making law schools Bar-friendly and stopping usage of technology in classroom.

KS hasn't applied to NLUD. She is a brilliant academic, but the more I read these stories about challenges to VC administrative decisions, the more I wonder why people like her (or Sudhir or Srividya) want to head these institutions in the first place. Seems like a horrible job! Faculty politics on the one hand, and student tantrums on the other!!

Ideally any of the older NLUs is bound to reveal the overall figures and proportional revenue distribution under RTI. But if you want operational expenses for every CLAT separately, then you may need to file RTIs at each of the 12 convening institutions so far.

Spot on on both points, ie bias of LI and unfairness in awarding CLAT to NLU Jabalpur.

Take a bit of trouble. Call them up and confirm first about the name. Otherwise they would reject your first application on those flimsy grounds only. These are classic delaying tactics.

Never been a student in one of them? All payments are made to the University account which is held in the name of the registrar. You can always give the University Office a call and get this information (atleast at the one I went to).

As opposed to other idiots like you or me? How can we believe you have taken such a small step on such hallowed grounds yourself, thus signifying a giant one for mankind? ;) Jokes apart, I do happen to agree with you about the passing judgment part. Nobody who does that anonymously should be taken seriously.

How do you know she's the best candidate for a VC position exactly? You've witnessed her administrative prowess first hand or even via media? Do remember that Sudhir did have prior admin experience too at APU before applying at law school. That went in his favour too. SR may be an excellent academic, but from what I'm aware of, she lacks in such experience at present.

If only industry experience counted in Indian academia! I really wish it did. Have seen a close friend with impeccable industry rep trying his hand at academics and eventually giving up after being victimised, targeted and ridiculed by colleagues, admin and certain students instigated by those very colleagues. It's a miracle people from the industry choose to come back to academia here at all despite knowing what might be in store for them.

Just on the point of how “prestigious” her pedigree is . Come on- GW, kcl and Texas a&m would be safety schools for any middle- top ranked students today . Even if they wanted to specialise in IP.
Without looking at IP specifically - these unis wouldn’t make high rankings anywhere. If that matters to one. And someone gets the commonwealth fellowship every year. It’s not that much of an achievement- maybe it was back in the day.
It doesn’t to me matter what the rankings of the institution she is associated with, nor eve what scholarships she has won.

Does she have a history of impactful research and writing? I don’t know about this - prestigious journals for sure- but impactful?
Has she mentored and taught enough students well? Does she have the experience working in administration of a law university? Does she show sensitivity to the problems indian students might face?

Her practice experience should count yes - but definitely not as much as her academic experience. You’re not hiring her to practice law, you’re hiring her to be an academic - more than that- to build a university.

39.2: A true clown/troll who has probably never set foot foot inside an NLU, let alone at a foreign university. Have you heard of Graeme Dinwoodie? No? Thought as much. He was the IP Chair prof at Oxford. Which college did he leave Oxford for? Chicago Kent. Ranked slightly lower than GW in IP law and in the same bracket as Texas A&M overall. For specialist fields certain colleges have very good reputations. Texas A&M is one of them with respect to IP law. And once again, GW is ranked 5 for IP in the US. Funny also that you consider KCL a low ranked college. QS ranks it 19 overall in the world in law, above Penn, Michigan, Cornell and Duke. As for the Commonwealth scholarship being "not that much of an achievement", just shows what a prize moron you are!

Gah get over yourself. FYI - I both went to an NLU and an actually prestigious foreign university. I’ve been through the application process - if you’re graduating near/ at the top of your class at nls - the world is literally your oyster. Even getting into HYS and Oxbridge is mostly easy if you don’t mess up and are actually serious about academia .

I’m sorry but in that context - for someone to go to a kcl or an lse - those are basically finishing schools for the privileged- networking opportunities more than spaces for serious scholarship - there really isn’t two ways about it.

Have you met many commonwealth scholars? I have - each one dumber than the last - it’s worse for Fulbright scholars. Have you sat for these interviews ? I have - anyone else who has will also tell you that it has less to do with merit and more to do with “fit”/ the applicants politics.

I’m not saying any of this matters - SR might be absolutely wonderful in other ways - if someone can actually speak to how she has done on any of the questions I mentioned I would be happy to listen - but if you’re gonna say this ranking stuff matters- someone is gonna call you on it.

Exactly this university was nowhere like four years ago - and you’re up here comparing it to oxford? For real?

I’ll go even further than that - Upendra Baxi also left Warwick for jgls - does that mean jgls is better? Come on! Think about what you’re saying for one second.

And here’s a counter example- when Lawrence Lessig left Stanford for Harvard - he took a huge part of Stanford’s Tech law cred with him - that is what actually involved professors do. Like actual star professors who are worth the title. And on the other hand you have 8th best for one specialisation and 83rd over all- does not equal oxford - like at all. To think it does is a mediocre mans wish fulfilment.

Your point about Oxbridge not being at a comparable level with TA&M may or may not be accurate. But the sheer arrogance that drips from your comments about the disparagement aimed at Commonwealth and Fulbright scholars is unbelievable. Actually, given that you are a self-professed student of NLS, I can probably believe it. A lot of students from that university have long since excelled in looking down on others and having an inflated opinion of their own relative and absolute worth. However, your attitude does indicate that your expensive stints both at NLS and the branded 'foreign' university have mostly failed to educate you in any true sense of the word. I've seen many of those scholars. And though I can't say whether I've actually seen you in reality, I got a fairly good idea about you from your opinions. I know which of the two I will put my faith on about being good academicians, professionals and human beings.

Wait - so I’m ignorant if I’m not from an NLU and foreign uni - but when i reveal that I have actually been in those spaces and know what I’m talking about I’m arrogant ?

So who exactly is allowed to criticise this elitism? My expensive education? What makes you think I paid anything for my education?

It is not arrogant to point out that these scholarships serve more as shorthand for status than true merit. It is the opposite of that.

The people on here claiming that going to a foreign university or getting a scholarship automatically makes one the best candidate for being the VC - who can’t stand the idea of one of their own being scrutinised - of the institutions they aspire to being accurately assessed- those are the arrogant people.

If SR hadn’t gone to a foreign university and hadn’t earned any scholarships - that would have been fine by me - as long as people supporting her candidature could prove that she’s actually prepared for and good at the job. But people here chose to rely on the ranking of institutions she has been associated with, and the scholarships she has earned - so it becomes very pertinent to ask exactly what these rankings mean and what the standard for these scholarships are.

I honestly can’t remember the last time these scholarships went to someone actually needy and deserving- they go to the same privileged kids from metro cities with conservative politics. And I’m done calling that meritorious.

I had no objection regarding your points about the VC position or factors involved therein. Nor was I the one to call you out for not studying at an NLU. I called you out on your arrogance of arbitrarily calling a set of people dumb under garb of anonymity. Because that's not what educated people do. I stand by that condemnation. Who died and made you the arbiter of merit of people who actually achieved something cogent without establishing your credentials and factors of evaluation first? If you are calling them out as undeserving, then at least have the guts to do so under your own name and drop the supercilious attitude. Also, I called your education expensive because that's exactly what it is. It doesn't matter who actually foots the bill, your parents, yourself, taxpayers or trusts. It sure appears here that it hasn't achieved the objective that it should have. Knowledge is supposed to make people humble, not arrogant.

Did I call any one individual dumb? No I didn’t. All I said was that this assumption that commonwealth/Fulbright scholars are all geniuses is untrue and contrary to my experience with them. They have all been dumber than the last. And I can have this opinion just as much as anyone here claiming these folks are the messiah come back.
As for anonymity- that is my choice. I know what speaking the truth publicly does in circles like the one I belong to. I have no reason to invite that upon myself.
I’m not calling myself some super smart genius- you assumed that. And humility in the absence of truth is just called being spineless. And just as much as anyone else gets to have an opinion on this - I do too. The only reason everyone is so riled up about this is because I only said what every nls student says in their dorm room - this stuff, these “achievements “- they’re just not a big deal.

Quote:

If SR hadn’t gone to a foreign university and hadn’t earned any scholarships - that would have been fine by me

Quote:

I honestly can’t remember the last time these scholarships went to someone actually needy and deserving

Now we get to the root of his anger....LOL.

He ain't from NLSIU. He says he went to "an NLU". Someone who went to NLSIU would say that he went to NLSIU. He is possibly from NALSAR (maybe has a grudge against SR when she taught there) or another NLU (chip on his shoulder as he didn't get Commonwealth and thinks SR is undeserving of it). He is also probably from a not-so-wealthy-family, given that he calls LSE and KCL as a "finishing school" for the elite looking to make networks (er... what does he think of MBA schools then??).

Fulbright and Commonwealth scholars are all dumb, especially Fulbright? Let's see: Lawrence Liang (both), Sidharth Narain (F-bright), Ashutosh Salil (F-bright), Naiyya Sagy (F-bright), Pritam Baruah (C-wealth), Mathew John (C-wealth). As for old-school people: Madhava Menon (F-bright), BS Chimni (F-bright)....

Also, you say that you attended " an actually prestigious foreign university". Mind telling us which "actually prestigious" college it is?

My hunch is you're probably from a tier 2 NLU and went for an LLM (if at all) to a university that's not in the top 20 in QS. No NLSIU/NALSAR grad would talk like this because they know which of their alumni have got Commonwealth and Fulbright.

Actually he said "I’ve been through the application process - if you’re graduating near/ at the top of your class at nls - the world is literally your oyster." This clearly indicates he's from NLSIU. Although I agree that him claiming so doesn't make it so necessarily.

Yeah, but he said he is from "an NLU" which someone from NLSIU would never say. As for world being one's oyster, that's true even for GNLU or Jindal toppers. They'll get (and have got) training contracts, Rhodes/Chevening scholarships etc. Also, Srividhya was among the toppers in her batch and chose to pursue a niche field she is genuinely interested in. For example, many people choose the Geneva Graduate School or Fletcher for international law, although their overall ranking is not that high. As I said, he has a clear grudge. Frustrated incel.

the reason so many top Indian legal scholars did constitutional law is because that’s where the funding was back then. The fact that SR carved out IP as a niche- she either wanted to be a big fish In a small pond or was just genuinely interested in it despite lack of opportunities in the field back then.

What a wonderful strawman this! Have you considered that dolls raising questions are doing so because status mark sets are assumed to be signs of merit? And that some of us might actually have experience with these profs and know better ? And that NLU alumni should be just as carefully scrutinised as anyone else ? Cause that makes better institutions ?

I don’t see anyone saying that the old guard should be in charge - I only see people asking if we can approach the new guard with the same critical thinking. People getting offended about this should really reconsider why the NLU brand matters so much to them.

Kindly stop snorting whatever you have been doing this early in the day. Much to please.

I don't know about the other points, but on pt 2, she does have a SJD which is a doctorate degree in law. So she meets that criteria.

Intellectuals always discuss various matters. There is a beautiful term for them in sanskrit "BUDDHIVILASI" so let them enjoy their discussion. Money making all the time is also not a great business.

I don't mind the discussion as much as the insinuations, slander and incessant judgement of people half of whom these guys haven't even met in their lives, all the while posing themselves as self-appointed arbiters of quality or competence. All the while staying anonymous.

It’s not hatred of SR- there is absolutely no animosity toward her at all. It is just the inability to keep quiet when privilege is passed off as merit.
Like I have said time and again - If one can prove that she is a capable sensitive administrator and a serious impactful academic- everyone would welcome her including me. But that is not the proof we are offered today- instead it is markers of status.
Who said leftists can’t be elite? Or science students ? Dyou know the history of either of those fields ? How dominated by the elite they have been? Doesn’t make them less elite.
The comment was aimed specifically at the law schools - and their oppressive history of exclusion and elitism shouldn’t be ratified as merit when you’re evaluating people from there today.
The rest is just your amazing imagination.

But, but...all roads lead to Rhodes (and greatness), no?

Average NLSIU student wasn't baited into the agitation. They were panicking about a lot of things - prospective year loss, interim admin being very student unfriendly etc. Sudhir has already condoned many year losses (from potentially 180+ to less than 40).

Ah, the hallmark of a true enthusiast about bringing back academic excellence. Let every person graduate regardless of their academic performance. Right to education taken to a whole new level.

What exactly is so great about the current website? I mean, it looks alright, but nothing exceptional. Certainly not any better than say, the GNLU or NLUD websites. It's not even very friendly to differently-abled users (none of the NLU websites is tbh). Unless you have specific technical insight, I see no substance in your claim. In case you do have it, please share that.

Are you crazy? It is a million times better. You have no sense of aesthetics.

And you have no sense of proportion when it comes to sycophancy. Don't go the NLUD way of beating one's own drum and seeking to establish superiority on every random count. Law School is supposed to be cooler than that.

I'll keep saying NLU Bangalore. What would you do, sue me?

Kian, please do a story on how the new NLSIU Messiah has the Midas touch when it comes to everything other than actual gold (if he had the latter, the financial issues would have been sorted out by now). Please also do a story about how NLSIU students cannot venture out anymore into their own playground after sundown unless they are playing admin-approved bona fide sports.

PSJ would prevail. SR doesn't have lobbying power. Sudhir ultimately won because of MP Singh. There's nobody like that to speak for SR in this search committee.

RS would also want someone who would not be too keen to review all the irregularities that might have been committed during his predecessor's reign. Jaswal is a more suitable candidate for that rather than Srividhya.

So if you all are right and PSJ makes it, then will Srividhya try for another NLU? And who goes to RGNUL?

It's doubtful whether she would. I won't claim like some of the pundits here to know her mind, but barring NLSIU (for prestige) or NLUD (for location and funding), the other NLUs stand lesser chance of attracting an academic from abroad as VC at present. RGNUL would get one of the people from the existing cliques. Might be even Jaswal's wife.

I still believe an academic from abroad should at least spend some time working as an academic in India before taking up an administrative position here, if for no other reason than to be closely acquainted with some ground realities faced by the students, faculty and non-teaching staff too. This is a general observation and not meant to be a reflection on Srividhya, who may turn out to be an excellent VC for all I know if she gets chosen.

Spoken by someone from a competing NLU who wants Jaswal as NLUD VC so that NLUD declines.

Actually, you can't be further off the mark. I want good people to be in charge of every single NLU in the country and personally believe that Jaswal won't be a good fit at all for NLUD and its thriving research culture. However, I do not ascribe to the theory that only NLU alumni with foreign degrees make good VCs, especially since there is yet to be a single successful precedent of that. You clearly are bereft of any reasoning ability, so no use engaging with you any further on this matter or anything. The fact that you still consider NLUs to be competing with each other is sufficient evidence of your immaturity and ignorance.

No on both counts. NALSAR is a good place, but nowhere near NLSIU in terms of global recognition or reputation. Not its fault, it's just the additional years mostly. NLUM lacks stability (and absolutely zero reputation so far) and Mumbai still doesn't have the power equations and government networking that Delhi still enjoys. NLUD has already made a decent name for itself, together with readily available funding.

You seem to be updated enough. Send guest posts to Kian reflecting your research and then complain if he doesn't publish them. Given the state that the country is in, nobody cares who becomes the next Head Honcho for these piddly local colleges masquerading as universities.

Ramesh did his BSc in 1974, so around 65 definitely. He's still a very good teacher though, his administrative skills aside. It would be quite a loss for the students when he leaves the place. I am not fond of his leadership, but his teaching.

Ramakrisha also did BSc in 1974. Sudhir may now sack Ramesh and Ramakrishna and appoint alumni, or give them 6 months to go to another NLU as VC, like Lizzie has done. Is the rule automatic retirement by 65?