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Covid-19: Bci Issues Circular Asking Legal Education Centres To Be Thoughtful In Charging Fees
Bar Council of India issues circular asking Legal education centers to charge considerate fees due to the pandemic
The BCI has been flooded with requests from the students across the country pursuing law with one constant plea to accept the fees in easy installments by their centers of Legal Education.
Manan Kumar Mishra, Chairman of BCI, responding to these requests received from students all over the country has issued the advisory to all legal institutions to be adaptable and flexible in their fee structures, that is, to accept fees in easy installments, waive off certain component of the fees such as infrastructure fee, library fee, and other facilities because no physical classes are being conducted and therefore there will be no use of such facilities due to ongoing pandemic. The parents of these students also pleaded the same.
As informed by Mr. Sanjay Rathi, Co-Chairman of BCI went on to issue the circular regarding Legal Education Centres to be considerate in charging fees pertaining to the COVID-19 distress.
It has been observed that during such times when families are facing financial distress and problems due to the present scenario like laid off from their jobs, faced salary cuts, businesses lose out on profits, there is no stability of income as such, therefore some reasonable concession should be allowed to the students and not burden them and the parents with additional problems.
Hence, considering the issues faced, the BCI has asked all the legal institutions to show empathy and be considerate and make it easy for the students. It further went on to advise the institutions to form flexible alternative schemes so that students can pay in easy installments instead of paying in lump sum at once which is difficult to many presently.
The BCI reminded the centers about their savings on infrastructure, it has asked them to adjust accordingly as students have faced additional costs for availing the benefits of online classes like laptop/computers, stable internet connections, etc..
The institution's deadline or last date on paying the fees can lead to mental agony and loss of opportunity for the students who are not in a condition to pay for the same as further, it will bar them from using the online facilities.
The BCI has called it a Special Emergency Situation and stated that students wouldn't have made such a plea under normal situation. Therefore, being the regulator of legal education, the circular has been issued.
Bar Council of India, inter alia, has asked the legal education centers to act as a helping hand without imposing deadlines and further penalty in case of default payments or then exclude them from access to online education.
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