The Bar Council of India (BCI) has provisionally approved Hidayatullah National Law University (HNLU) in Nava Raipur for its five-year BA.LL.B. (Hons) program for the 2026-27 academic year. This decision comes after HNLU was listed among six National Law Universities (NLUs) lacking current BCI approval. In response, HNLU communicated with Bar & Bench, explaining the delay was due to a technical issue and a contested late fee on the BCI portal.
In a letter dated August 4, the BCI conveyed its decision to grant this provisional extension as a special case, emphasizing that it should not set a precedent. The BCI acknowledged HNLU’s status as a government institution and therefore waived the late fee. However, the BCI underscored that this exemption does not absolve HNLU from fulfilling all application requirements on the BCI portal. This includes uploading necessary documents, compliance affidavits, and details concerning courses, sessions, and intake numbers.
The letter further clarified that merely creating an entry or making partial updates on the portal does not constitute application completion. The provisional extension remains contingent on further scrutiny, inspection, and potential modification or withdrawal if the application is not fully completed within the stipulated timeframe.
The BCI also stipulated that from the 2027-28 session onwards, extensions will not be granted unless complete applications, inclusive of all documents, fees, and compliance materials, are submitted within the designated period. The current approval requires HNLU to periodically submit bank statements, verifying that faculty salaries have been paid since April 2024, every three months. Additionally, a notarized compliance affidavit must be submitted within six months, detailing compliance with faculty, library, and infrastructure requirements.
