Hi everyone, I was a student of NUJS online courses, and has been waiting for certificate as I have finished my course. one and half years back Division Bench of Calcutta HC ordered that we must be given certificates and our course will be deemed to be UGC recognised. Since then NUJS took out notice saying they will implement the court order and asked us to submit details to the University which I did.

After this there was a challenge in Supreme Court (filed very late by UGC - 9 months after the divison bench order) and NUJS said it will wait for SC order before giving certificates.

Now SC has dismissed the SLP by UGC, and upheld HC order.

Why is NUJS still not issuing a certificate to me? I wrote mails to the VC and the registrar, there was no response.

I have filed a contempt petition before Calcutta HC, but the hearing did not happen since 5 months as the bench has been separated and one of the judges is now posted in Andaman & Nicobar Islands.

Do I have to wait till the judge returns to Kolkata for contempt petition to be heard before I can get my certificate?

or can I file a fresh writ before HC?

Why is NUJS doing this travesty of justice. There are clear court orders, why can't a premier law university follow the law? Why do we have to fight to get our rights in courts @ every step?

Have we not suffered enough?

What I gather from this whole fiasco is that ▮▮▮ ▮▮▮ (they were literally misleading students by marketing their courses as "UGC Recognised"). NUJS shut them down. The students who fell victim to this should not have to face the brunt. So the court said NUJS must at least give certificates to the students.

In none of the court orders is there any line about the legitimacy of the courses themselves. But iPleaders is portraying it as some sort of their own victory. When in reality it is just a relief awarded to the students ▮▮▮.

NUJS should respect this and give the students the certificates at least or issue refund.

There is no scam by iPleaders. If there was, by now it would have been established in the court. Rather, iPleaders won every case in court, assisted students by fielding top lawyers and methodically winning every case against NUJS for the students.

NUJS has admitted its fault, signed a settlement agreement in December 2022, paid 80 lakhs approx to iPleaders. iPleaders delivered services a 2nd time to learners, without charging anything extra. Many students cleared exams. This data was given to NUJS.

NUJS issued certificates to a few people. And then stopped, and breached the agreement, refused to pay further dues to iPleaders and refused to give more certificates to rest of the learners with the justification that UGC has filed SLP in SC although SC refused to give stay on HC order when UGC asked for it.

UGC kept taking dates in court for many months. NUJS used it as excuse to not implement HC order (although its no valid justification where there is no stay)

NUJS has acted illegally throughout

iPleaders never marketed any course as UGC recognised, rather they made everyone sign a waiver that they know course is not UGC recognised, this is part of court filings and court observed that students were aware of no UGC recognition

In any case, these were courses run by NUJS, students paid to NUJS, iPleaders was only a vendor to NUJS, any non compliance is solely responsibility of NUJS

and this is why, nobody dared to file a single case against iPleaders, while iPleaders has been taking NUJS to cleaners over unpaid dues and winning arbitration

You allegation of scma against iPleaders is entirely defamatory

Ipleaders needs to finish the course first and confirm that you're eligible for the certificate. They have taken lakhs of money from the university way back in the beginning of this year after the university asked them to help implement the order. Yet to do anything despite getting all the money. They are now hankering after costs and interest.

This is why no reputed edtech company should work with government universities, they will always screw up something good, even in their own interest, to satisfy small ego and petty politics

LawSikho was started by iPleaders founders post this fall out which is now many times bigger in terms of revenue compared to NUJS

I fully stand with you. You should do the following:

1. Write a letter to the Chancellor, CJI Chandrachud. Then share your letter plus the petition with Bar & Bench. Once B&B publishes it, his office may take notice.

2. Circulate the above to the media as well. Target online news sites like the Wire, Newsclick, and Swarajya. The first 2 are pro-CPIM and the other is pro-BJP, both parties being opposed to the Mamata government.

3. Share your grievance with Left MP and Senior Advocate Bikash Bhattacharya, who is single-handedly fighting in the Cal HC against corruption by the TMC govt. Also share your grievances with BJP MPs from Bengal, who can raiseit on social media.

4. File a contempt petition in the SC instead of the Cal HC. The Cal HC is the most craven court in the country, with the exception of just a few brave judges (such as Justice Abhijit Gangopadhyay, Justice Amrita Sinha and Justice Rajshekhar Mantha --- I guess your matter is not being heard by them).

2.

Correction, NUJS paid iPleaders 80 lakhs under settlement agreement

iPleaders got 20 lakhs more awarded in arbitration post settlement agreement, which was breached by NUJS after paying a part of the 1.3 cr dues under the settlement agreement

This is also recorded in arbitration award

But thats not HC order, HC never asked to pay anything to iPleaders

HC order is to finish courses and give certificates. When is NUJS doing that? And if its case is that because of iPleaders it is unable to give certificates where is that case being made?

Dear Op,

This advice is not in good faith. Contrary to perception on LI TMC government hardly cares about NUJS(Many don't even know it exists). Approaching politicians/lawyers with political connections will unnecessarily add political dimensions where none exist and complicate the matter. Just approach a decent counsel in Calcutta HC who isn't overtly political and well versed with the court craft/dynamics (there are many) and fight the university in court.