The Delhi High Court issued notice to the Consortium of National Law Universities and the Bar Council of India (BCI) on a plea demanding that the Common Law Admission Test for the year 2024 (CLAT 2024) be undertaken in all local dialects listed in the Constitution’s eighth schedule.

Sudhanshu Pathak, a Delhi University law student, submitted the petition, which cited a survey conducted by the Improving Diversity by Providing Access to Legal Education (IDIA) Fund. According to the poll, more than 95% of surveyed students studying at National Law Universities (NLUs) came from schools where English was the primary language of instruction at both the lower secondary and upper secondary levels. The petition argued that this was not surprising considering that CLAT is a standardized test that requires a high level of English proficiency, which is a mark of status and thus provides an additional benefit to students from an English medium background.

The authorities were given four weeks to answer to the petition by a division bench of Chief Judge Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad. On May 19, the matter will be heard again. CLAT is currently only offered in English. According to the petition, this poses grave injustice to non-English medium students.