A controversy has arisen at Hyderabad’s well-known law school NALSAR over the choice of India’s Chief Justice, Surya Kant, as chief guest at its convocation.
A section of students at the National Academy of Legal Studies and Research (NALSAR) recently emailed the administration a petition opposing the selection of the Chief Justice of India as chief guest at the 2026 convocation, asking the authorities to reconsider the choice. Several students told BBC Telugu that the email had been sent on their behalf, though they did not wish to give their names or identities.
The students said the email was addressed to the institution’s top administrators, including the vice-chancellor and registrar. The petition was submitted on 23 July, though it became known later. The administrators did not comment.
In the second week of July, NALSAR officials and professors learned that the convocation would be held soon and were asked by the administration to begin preparations. One professor said the administration had told them the date had not yet been fixed, adding: “We heard that the Chief Justice himself expressed a wish to attend as guest.” Given the sensitivity, neither students nor teachers wished to be named. The authorities told students the Chief Justice had expressed a wish to attend, after which a section of students emailed asking that the decision be reconsidered.
In the email, the students wrote that they had some objections to inviting the Chief Justice. “Since the convocation date is not yet final, we believe the name of the chief guest is still under consideration, and there is scope to weigh our views,” they wrote. One student said law-department students had emailed the petition first, and students from other departments later added their objections.
At the call of a group referred to as the CJP, young people and students held a march to Parliament in Delhi on 20 July. A lawyer challenged the police lathi-charge on the protesters in a petition to the Supreme Court, saying: “There is video evidence of police brutality. Students are protesting at Jantar Mantar, on whom police used excessive force.”
In response, the Chief Justice at first remarked: “Don’t waste your own time, and don’t waste ours.” The NALSAR students cited that comment in their email objection. The Chief Justice later defended himself, saying he had only opposed the lawyer’s plea for an immediate hearing and had asked that the application go through the court’s due process. But his “don’t waste time” remark, like an earlier “cockroach” comment he had made, sparked debate on social media. Chief Justice Surya Kant later also criticised the Delhi police over the “excesses” at the march-to-Parliament programme.
In their email, the students wrote: “As law students our considerations are limited. The convocation symbolises the university’s values, constitutional rights, justice, and its commitment to receiving petitions and discussing objections. It is an occasion to reflect on the decisions the university takes.” They added: “We feel that accepting a degree from the hands of a person who denies allegations of police brutality goes against the values NALSAR taught us.” The students strongly urged the university to reconsider its choice of chief guest and requested proper discussion with student representatives and other stakeholders.
The BBC contacted NALSAR vice-chancellor Srikrishna Deva Rao and registrar N Vasanthi by email and phone about the students’ objection, but they had not responded. Separately, the English daily The Hindu reported that Chief Justice Surya Kant was also to have been chief guest at the convocation of the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) in Mumbai on 2 August, but that event too was postponed. TISS announced on 31 July that the convocation had been put off for unavoidable reasons.
বাংলায় মূল প্রতিবেদন পড়ুন · Read the original Bengali report