Shamnad Basheer
Shamnad Basheer has won the Infosys Science Foundation 2014 prize in the humanities category today.
The former NUJS Kolkata MHRD chair professor for intellectual property (IP), founder of the Increasing Diversity by Increasing Access (IDIA) initiative and the SpicyIP blog, was awarded the prize “for his contributions to the analysis of a range of legal issues, including pharmaceutical patent injunctions and enforcement”, according to Infosys’ press release.
He has in recent years been involved in the Novartis-Glivec patent case in the Supreme Court, as an academic intervenor, and in the Delhi University textbook photocopying case.
The prize, conferred on individuals in six categories, consists of a purse of Rs 55 Lakhs, a 22 karat gold medal and a citation certificate for each category. Nobel prize laureate Amartya Sen was on the six-person jury for the prize in the humanities category. In previous years the prizes have been won mostly by academics and professors.
The Increasing Diversity by Increasing Access (IDIA) initiative, which seeks to encourage law students from non-traditional backgrounds to join national law schools, is looking to move into a next growth phase.
Former Luthra & Luthra capital markets head Madhurima Mukherjee has been assisting the Increasing Diversity by Increasing Access (IDIA) legal education NGO in formalising and scaling up operations, since she quit the law firm five months ago.
Shamnad Basheer, the ministry of HRD chair professor in intellectual property law at NUJS Kolkata, has resigned after losing trust in vice chancellor (VC) Prof Ishwara Bhat.
A Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) 2012 examinee lost out on a Nalsar Hyderabad seat due to a mistake in last year’s question paper, the Delhi high court has held.
Spicy IP blogger and NUJS Kolkata student Aparajita Lath was sent a letter threatening a defamation suit by the Times Publishing House, for her post that summarised the 19-year-old dispute between the Times Group and the UK’s Financial Times newspaper. [SpicyIP]
The notice threatening civil and criminal proceedings states: “Pursuant to the publication of the impugned article our Client has been contacted by several persons, inquiring about the same. Our client has been questioned and subjected to contempt and ridicule and has suffered immense prejudice and loss of goodwill, reputation, standing and goodwill in the industry.”
Spicy IP founder Shamnad Basheer responded to the notice, which was published on the Spicy IP blog:
“Aparajita’s post was based almost entirely on news stories published in Mint, a leading business paper, as you yourself admit in your notice. We’ve queried the folks at Mint, and apparently you’ve not sent them any legal notice as yet. We can only guess that you’re averse to picking people your own size.
“You also object to Aparajita’s statement that ‘this trademark saga throws light on the problems and obstacles foreign companies have to face when trying to enter the Indian market.’ Again, we assume that as a qualified lawyer, you are well aware of the distinction between an opinion and a fact. This is a fair comment/opinion expressed by Aparajita.”
In August 2012, pharma company Natco had sued Basheer for Rs 25 lakh claiming defamation.
NUJS Kolkata professor Shamnad Basheer, who is the HRD ministry’s chair professor for intellectual property, argued over two days in his first-of-its-kind academic intervention in the landmark Novartis-Glivec patent hearing in the Supreme Court.
Swiss drug maker Novartis had approached the SC in September when it was refused a patent for cancer drug Glivec which is sold by India’s generic drug makers to reportedly 1.2 billion Indians and to poorer nations across the world.
Basheer argued before justices Aftab Alam and Ranjana Desai that even though Novartis didn’t satisfy the test to patent Glivec, excessive pricing can also not be a ground to revoke a patent. [Spicy IP]
In August, pharma company Natco had filed for defamation against Basheer in the Delhi high court, claiming that its reputation was harmed by Basheer’s comments in his entry in SpicyIP on the company’s ongoing legal battle.
Exclusive: The Delhi high court on Tuesday declined to grant interim injunction to pharma major Natco in its case of defamation against NUJS Kolkata professor and intellectual property blog SpicyIP’s founder Shamnad Basheer.
Exclusive: Pharmaceutical company Natco has filed in the Delhi high court against intellectual property (IP) blog SpicyIP, claiming that the website published an article that allegedly contained “false, derogatory and defamatory” statements about the company.
80 Indian law teachers from 32 Indian and three foreign universities addressed a petition to the Bar Council of India (BCI) yesterday, urging the regulator to “consult more meaningfully” with legal academics while framing policies related to legal education.
11 out of 40 students coached for the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) 2012 by the Increasing Diversity by Increasing Access to Legal Education (IDIA) free coaching program, made it to six NLUs in the first admission lists this year, including NLSIU Bangalore, NUJS Kolkata and NLU Jodhpur.
The undergraduate educational expenses of four out of the 11 successful IDIA scholars are completely covered by the programme.
Eleven students out of 50 trained by the Increasing Diversity by Increasing Access to Legal Education (IDIA) program have been selected to join various national law universities (NLUs).
Outlook India defended itself against the criticisms in last year’s complaint by NUJS Kolkata professor Shamnad Basheer and two students against Outlook and India Today for publishing allegedly error-riddled and misleading law school rankings. Outlook revealed the details of its complex weighting system of ranking but declined to publish further information, in what the NUJS complainants called a ‘lackadaisical manner’.
NUJS Kolkata has announced the 2011 CLAT (Common Law Admission Test) with radical changes, including distribution through the Indian post office network and the ditching of static general knowledge and legal knowledge questions. Meanwhile, the law school diversity project IDIA has pledged to fund admission fees for all students in need.
NUJS Kolkata professor Shamnad Basheer and two students have threatened to complain to the Press Council of India about the law school rankings of national magazines Outlook India and India Today, which they allege suffered from "gross inaccuracies and methodological flaws" that violated "canons of journalistic ethics" and did a great disservice to students.
The IDIA (Increasing Diversity by Increasing Access to Legal Education) project, conceptualised and spearheaded by Prof. Shamnad Basheer (IPR Chair Professor, NUJS) aims to address the concern of NLUs becoming elitist. IDIA endeavours to help students from rural areas, poor backgrounds, vernancular medium schools etc. make it to the top NLUs.
That NLUs are becoming elitist was previously an anecdotal speculation. However, results coming from a survey conducted with 87 first year students (batch of 2014) at NUJS prove it to be a fact:
ü 97.7% of the students studied in English medium schools.
ü Schools of 88.51% students were in an urban area.
ü 82.76% of the students took coaching for CLAT.
ü Only 4.6% of the students have family incomes less than 1 lac rupees pa.
The rural-urban/rich-poor divide becomes clearer still: there are no students (0 %) from Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, J & K or even Punjab while 2% of the students are from Chandigarh alone. Nine students (10.34%) are from Delhi (NCT).
Now LST, a leading coaching institution has atleast 4 centers in Delhi and 2 centers in Chandigarh. It is not difficult to see what makes students in cities tick. There is no LST center in Himachal or J & K.
That CLAT is in itself is a pro elititist/english-educated entrance exam is shown in this superlative piece by Prof. Basheer. He argues that a logic reasoning based CLAT with less emphasis on English language, static GK etc. will not only result in better law students but will also ensure a level playing field for all students.
Here is the proverbial last straw: 10.34% of the students are from Maharashtra (a very rich/urban state) while none of the students are from Chattisgarh or Orrisa (poor states) [1]. The reasons are not hard to find: the CLAT form at 2500 bucks is expensive, CLAT coaching at 25000 bucks is expensive and the fees at NLUs is very pricey too.
Another useful insight: A large number of students are from places where the top NLUs are situated. Their presence seems to have contributed towards increased level of awareness. The division is: Karnatka (NLSIU) 9.2%, Andhra Pradesh (NALSAR) 5.75%, West Bengal (NUJS) 16.09% and Rajasthan (NLUJ) 4.6%.
Finally in rural/poor regions of our country, there is a deplorable lack of awareness about law as a career option; NLUs or CLAT are an unheard commodity. Pilot projects in Pelling (Sikkim), Tumkur (Karnatka) and Shanti Bhavan (Tamil Nadu) prove this empirically.
The IDIA project wants to change this around.
Awareness programs about Law-CLAT-NLUs; identification of students with an aptitude for law and finally establishing tie-ups with coaching institutions to train students free of cost are some of the steps IDIA takes. To those who make it to the top NLUs scholarships, stipends and mentoring too will be provided.
We believe that the top-notch education and career opportunities the students will get in NLUs shall ensure grass-root human resource development. It is hoped that once successful the students will invest back in the communities they represent. Also our law schools will nurture more diverse ideas and research.
[1] However, 5.75% of the students are from Bihar, 3.45% from Jharkhand. Students from this part of the country have done well in other competitive exams too (IIT-JEE, Civil Services). An interesting case study?
Part II- IDIA: Helping Potted Frogs (Kup Manduka) Thrive in Seas
KupManduka is the story of ‘the frog in a well/pot’. The frog jumps from wall to wall of the well/pot and feels proud. However, when he finds itself in the sea, he comes to know that frogs in the sea jump much further. He is crestfallen.
I take out the element of pride. My frog can jump from one wall to another because of the constrained environment he is in. His vision is limited by the walls and so are his jumps. The body achieves what the mind can conceive. You cannot hit a target which you cannot see.
When my frog is thrown into a sea, he finds himself lost. With no one to guide him, he is unable to find his way. The harsh environment and the cut lung competition stifles him. However, when a mentor guides him, the frog thrives.
THE FROG OF THE POT
Once upon a time a frog
Croaked aloud in an earthy pot.
The croak was of victory for
The dear frog had jumped from one
Corner to another corner
And in the pot there was
A loud, a resounding murmur.
A farmer, swarthy dark and strong
Impressed and obviously happy
Took the frog, his pet, his chappy
To a big, blue pond.
There the frog jumped;
Jumped forward and ahead
And his confidence took that many steps
………………………………..backwards!
And then the fission of dreams
In the tough, mad competition.
But hail Muse! The farmer came,
Touched a vein and knocked his brain
And said aloud “Jump Again”!
Though alone, he clapped- resounding claps!
The frog remembered the house and its chaps,
The farmer and his swarthy skin,
The earthy pot under the tin.
And hail him! The dreams did fuse.
And fusion does ten times produce-
Energy. Energy to jump far and wide
Which in time proves true and right
So that the frog of the pot
Can be a winner in the pond
And croak aloud, croaks that resound!
And those resounding croaks
Shall one day break
The earthy walls; the boundaries laid
And create a space, a boundless space
Where frogs can jump; jumps that astound
And croak aloud, croaks that resound.
The IDIA family is growing well with law firms, lawyers, NGOs and law schools coming out in support. Here is the Facebook page to keep you updated. Here is how you can help.
PS- Wow! I didn’t even speak of the unaffordable fees at NLUs.
PS 2- Please do follow the blog and join the Facebook page. Also, cartloads of thanks to LegallyIndia for fantastic support to IDIA.
The law ministry, law firms Krishnamurthy and Co, Trilegal and Wadia Ghandy, CLAT coaching institute IMS and law schools NLSIU Bangalore and NUALS Cochin have pledged financial or other support for NUJS Kolkata professor Shamnad Basheer's project to increase diversity in the legal profession, which visits poorer rural secondary school students to train and encourage them to apply to top law schools.