National Law School of India University Cancels 2026 Convocation
The National Law School of India University (NLSIU) in Bangalore has announced the cancellation of its 2026 convocation ceremony. The decision followed a dispute between the university authorities and graduating students, who opposed a directive to publicly invite Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant to the event.
Initial Plans and Student Objections
Initially, NLSIU planned the convocation for September 12, and invitations were extended to the graduating students on August 3. Many students made travel and accommodation arrangements based on this schedule. However, on August 15, over 700 members of the NLSIU community signed a statement objecting to the attendance of Bar Council of India (BCI) Chairperson Manan Kumar Mishra and CJI Surya Kant at the ceremony.
This opposition arose after the BCI’s controversial decision on August 13 to temporarily halt, then quickly reinstate, enrolment for NALSAR’s graduating batch due to their objections about CJI Surya Kant’s proposed presence at their convocation.
Meeting with CJI Surya Kant
In response to the students’ objections, the university informed the graduating batches on August 17 that CJI Surya Kant, in his role as the university’s Chancellor, wished to meet the students to discuss their concerns. The meeting took place shortly thereafter.
Subsequently, students were asked to vote on whether they would attend a convocation with CJI Surya Kant present, under the condition that no protests or disruptions would occur. The possibility of holding the ceremony without the CJI or allowing individual expressions during the event was not provided as an option. Students were also assured that BCI Chairperson Manan Kumar Mishra would not attend the function.
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Voting Results and New Conditions
The vote, conducted on August 23, showed majority support for attending the convocation with the CJI present, as the alternative was cancellation. However, on August 25, the students were informed of a new condition: they needed to issue a public statement inviting the CJI, and unanimous agreement on this new condition was required for the convocation to proceed.
Graduating students noted that this requirement was never previously discussed and necessitated fresh deliberations across the four graduating programs.
Final Decision
After two days of discussions, the students in the B.A., LL.B. (Hons.) program voted against issuing such a public invite, citing the abrupt nature of the request, the restriction on mentioning Mishra’s absence, and the requirement for the statement to be vetted before release. The lack of unanimous consensus led to NLSIU informing the graduating batches on August 27 that the convocation would not be held.
