CLAT can be held in regional languages, NTA tells Delhi High Court

The National Testing Agency, NTA, recently informed the Delhi High Court that the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) can be administered in regional languages such as Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, and others. On Wednesday, NTA filed an affidavit and stated its position in response to a petition requesting that CLAT-2024 be conducted not just in English but also in regional languages.

A bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Subramonium Prasad has asked NTA to file an affidavit on the matter, stating that if entrance exams for medical and engineering courses can be offered in regional languages, why can't CLAT, which is solely held in English?

On the same subject, NTA informed the court that it has a pool of experts and translators for preparing question papers in multiple languages, and that if the upcoming test must be conducted in regional languages, it could take place in the third or fourth week of January 2024, given the minimum time required for preparation of four months.

"Accordingly, the Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) -UG Question Papers can be translated into other Indian languages, such as Assamese, Bengali, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Odia, Punjabi, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu, and design/print the requisite OMR Answer Sheet in the required quantity depending on the number of candidates to be scheduled for the said Test," the affidavit said.

"As a result, in theory, NTA would be able to conduct the CLAT Examination in English and the other Indian languages mentioned above." In consultation with the Consortium of NLUs, NTA may also administer the CLAT (UG) in Computer Based Test (CBT) mode, similar to JEE (Main) and CUET (UG)."

What Did The Petitioner Have To Say?

Sudhanshu Pathak, a law student at Delhi University, claimed in his PIL that the CLAT UG exam "discriminates" and fails to provide a "level playing field" for students with educational backgrounds entrenched in regional languages.

What Does The Consortium Of National Law Universities Say?

The Consortium of National Law Universities informed the High Court that preparations for the upcoming CLAT 2024 are well underway, and that any judicial order requiring the introduction of additional language options this year without any deliberation or study would result in serious administrative and operational issues.

The consortium also stated that it has formed an expert committee of vice-chancellors from the five member NLUs to investigate the issue of offering CLAT in languages other than English and to prepare a comprehensive roadmap after reviewing stakeholders' perspectives and potential constraints. In response to the petition, the consortium stated that the expert committee's report will aid in making appropriate preparations for CLAT in more languages in the coming years.