Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said that the increasing presence of women will definitely bring qualitative change in legal education, besides helping in the implementation of gender justice laws.
“Legal education means empowerment. It enables a woman conscious of her rights to fight for not only her rights but for others also. It is gratifying to note that the presence of girl students in law schools has reached impressive levels, consequently increasing their number in legal profession and the judiciary,” he said after laying the foundation stone for the girl’s hostel annexe at the National University of Advanced Legal Studies (NUALS) at Kalamassery on Saturday. Suggesting the need to explore the potential of digital technology in legal education, Mr. Vijayan said digital technology must be used to transform legal education.
“We have to realise the importance of digital tools in higher education in general and professional education in particular. Legal education must offer leadership and vision to provide the best of learning in the digital age. If public institutions like NUALS fail in this task, private institutions, which are mostly in the nature of commercial establishments, will exploit the situation to their advantage. This should not happen,” he said.
The Chief Minister pointed out that there were people who argued that digitalisation of education would de-humanise education. “They maintain that teaching best occurs through great conversations between teachers and students. Studies show that blended learning environments that integrate digital and face-to-face interactions are the most effective,” he said.
Mr. Vijayan urged the varsity authorities to set up a memorial commemorating the contributions of senior lawyer M.K. Damodaran. The government will consider extending support to the initiative, he said.
In his presidential address, Hrishikesh Roy, Chief Justice of the Kerala High Court, said law students opted for a lifetime of learning when they decided to pursue legal education.
“Education in law does not end with institutional learning. Legal education is just a foundation. Unless you have that spirit, you will not be able to make a mark as a lawyer or law professional,” he added.
B.G. Harindranath, Law Secretary and Vice Chancellor in-charge of NUALS; K.V. Thomas, MP; V.K. Ebrahim Kunju, MLA; P. Leelakrishnan, member, executive council, NUALS, spoke.
