News Type: Event

General Instructions

• NLSAT 2025 examination will be held on April 27, 2025 (10:00 A.M. to 12:30 P.M). The duration of the test is two and half  hours. PWD Candidates will have extra 50 minutes.
• Candidates shall be allowed to leave the Test Centre only after the test is over.
• Candidates shall be allowed entry into the Test Centre only at 09:15 a.m. 
• Candidates shall not be permitted to enter into the examination hall after 10:15 A.M.

Instructions for Candidates at NLSIU Test Centre 

• Candidates must enter the NLSIU campus through Gate 1.
• Only the Candidates shall be allowed to enter the University campus. Parents/guardians of candidates shall not be allowed to enter the University campus.
• No parking facility for vehicles will be available. No vehicle shall be allowed entry into the campus.
• Candidates must show their Admit Card to enter the Test Centre.
• Candidate’s Admit card and Photo ID proof will be verified at the verification desk.
• Candidates are requested to follow the queue and the markings outside the gate. 

How to get to NLSIU?

If you need help in reaching our campus, please click here.

At this week’s seminar, we had presentations by two NLS faculty  – Dr. Dayal Paleri, Assistant Professor, Social Science, and Dr. Sneha Thapliyal, Associate Professor, Economics. The seminar was held on April 23, 2025, in the Ground Floor Conference Hall at NLSIU’s Training Centre at 3:45 pm.

Presentation 1

Title: ‘Reconstructing Cheraman: Communal Harmony as Politics of Belonging in Contemporary Kerala’ by Dr. Dayal Paleri.

Abstract

This paper examines how the Muslims of Kodungallur, in Kerala, faced with the rise of Hindu nationalist politics that increasingly problematize Muslim belonging in shared sacred and public spaces, engage in a renewed articulation of religious coexistence, primarily through the language of communal harmony (mathasouhardam). The articulation of communal harmony by the Muslims of Kodungallur is centered around the space of the Cheraman Juma Masjid, believed to be the first mosque in India, associated with the legendary king Cheraman Perumal. Based on the ongoing ethnographic fieldwork conducted in Kodungallur since 2021, the paper closely follows the process of the mosque’s reconstruction and situates it within both the local political dynamics of Kodungallur and the broader context of national politics.

Moving away from scholarship that has largely highlighted the instrumentalist nature of communal harmony as a discourse produced by dominant or state actors, the paper shifts the focus to minority articulations. It asks two inter-related questions: Can communal harmony be conceptualized as an active political process that involves actors, agential networks, and conscious articulations of political community? And, what political work does such a discourse perform when articulated by Muslim actors in the context of Hindu nationalism?

The paper argues that communal harmony is mobilized in Kodungallur as a strategic response to the contemporary challenge of Hindu nationalism and is used to affirm Muslim belonging across three interconnected sites: everyday life, historical memory, and the legal-constitutional realm. These are not peripheral, but constitutive dimensions of national membership. The paper conceptualizes this articulation as a politics of belonging that combines aspects of different trajectories of Muslim politics in postcolonial India-minority rights, claims of social backwardness, civic participation, and a redefined language of self-protection-without reifying or effacing Muslim religious identity. The paper suggests that such articulations of communal harmony offer an incipient possibility for reimagining Muslim citizenship in India today, especially in the face of an increasingly constricted experience of citizenship under Hindutva politics.

Presentation 2

Title: ‘Who Dares Wins? Framework for Environmental Justice Movements: Empirical Review of Biodiversity Conservation Related Movements’ by Dr. Sneha Thapliyal.

Abstract

Conflicts to attain environmental justice typically arise when the affected stakeholder group(s) is(are) concerned about adverse environmental and socio-economic impacts of a decision by the state. Such environmental justice movements (EJMs) vary in strategies used for and intensity of mobilisation, desired outcomes, and consequently, in their success. Combining literature from EJMs and the rich scholarship in the socio-political research on mobilisations in general, this paper aims to: (i) develop a comprehensive framework on EJMs from the start of the mobilisations to outcome; and (ii) present an empirical assessment of this framework in the context of biodiversity (BD) related EJMs across the world.

Internal (affected communities) and external stakeholders (organisations aligned to the cause of mobilisation) have mobilisation potential, which gets triggered leading to mobilisation. This mobilisation can be conventional or disruptive based on the intensity and duration of the conflict and intermediate state interventions/responses. To determine the impact of the factors identified in our proposed framework on mobilisation intensity and success of an EJM, we use the global data from EJAtlas online on biodiversity-related EJMs. Biodiversity related conflicts arise frequently and across the globe primarily due to the exclusionary economic growth and conservation practices. Further, the biodiversity-related EJ movements are embedded in different historical, socio-economic, and political contexts across varied types of ecosystems. Yet, despite the uniqueness of the context of each conflict, scholars argue that EJ movements are global in nature. Thus, there is merit in empirically investigating the common denominator in biodiversity-related EJ movements across the globe. Using multiple empirical strategies, we find that the networks (type of organisation involved), cultural framing (ecosystem services), and stage of the project affect the intensity of mobilisation. We also find that intensity of disruptive mobilisations and the kind of interventions by the state affect the successful outcomes of biodiversity-related EJMs. These results contribute to the literature on environment policy by identifying the determinants of successful EJ movements for targeted interventions in reducing conflict.

The National Law School of India University, Bengaluru is organising the 5th Sri. Hunasikote Abdul Ghaffar Annual Memorial Lecture on April 29, 2025 at 4.30 pm. The lecture will be delivered by Zakia Soman, Founder member of Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan, India,  on the topic ‘Waqf Law on the Anvil’.

About the Lecture Series

This memorial lecture was initiated by the Institute of Public Policy with the support of Prof. Adbul Aziz, Chair on Religious Minorities, NLSIU in memory of his father Sri. Hunasikote Abdul Ghaffar. Mr. Ghaffar passed away in 1982 in Hunasikote at the age of 74.

The first lecture in this series was delivered by Prof. Karkala Seetharam on April 3, 2019 on the topic “Human Rights as Public Policy.”

About the Speaker

Zakia Soman is a founder member of Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan, a mass organization of muslim women in India. She heads the Peace and Human Security theme in Action Aid. She is a member of Saape, South Asian Alliance for Poverty Eradication which engages with the issues of excluded communities regionally. She works and writes on issues of peace and justice, secularism, human rights, minority rights and rights of muslim women. Her articles advocating rights of Muslim women and tolerance and harmony with other communities are published in various Indian publications. She has edited a book on dalit Muslims and a volume on peace and justice in South Asia. She has been a university lecturer and a newspaper editor in Ahmedabad.

About the Discussant 

Prof. Ravivarma Kumar is a former Advocate General of Karnataka and Chairperson of the Karnataka Backward Classes Commission. Kumar has appeared in many prominent cases in his career, especially involving Constitutional Law, where he has drawn parallels with symbolism in other faiths, and relied on Article 15 of the Constitution which prohibits discrimination on grounds of religion.

The National Law School of India University (NLSIU) is hosting the NLSIU AI & Law Forum on May 10, 2025 at the NLS campus. The event will take place from 11 am to 5 pm.

About the Event

Large Language Models (LLMs) demonstrate capabilities that could substantially impact legal operations. Despite this potential, the adoption of AI in India’s legal sector faces several significant barriers. First, there exists a notable knowledge and capacity gap among legal professionals concerning the capabilities and practical applications of AI technologies. Many lawyers and practitioners lack the necessary technical understanding to effectively leverage these innovative tools.

Second, there is a persistent disconnect between the supply side—AI startups and tech firms developing innovative solutions—and the demand side—law firms, courts, and other legal stakeholders who could substantially benefit from these technologies. This gap results in missed opportunities for collaboration and the tailored development of solutions that meet the specific needs of the legal market.

Third, there is deep-rooted scepticism and reluctance within the legal community towards adopting AI solutions, particularly regarding concerns about reliability, privacy, and accountability. This cautious approach significantly limits the integration of AI into mainstream legal practice.

The NLSIU AI and Law Forum will discuss these challenges. The forum will bring together innovative startups and impactful civil society organisations that leverage Artificial Intelligence to address legal challenges, streamline processes, enhance access to justice, and contribute to systemic legal reform. Discussions will focus on practical applications of AI, such as legal research, contract analysis, predictive analytics for case outcomes, and the automation of routine legal tasks.

The forum will feature several engaging events:

• Presentations: AI startups and civil society organisations will showcase their products and initiatives through live demonstrations or presentations, followed by interactive Q&A sessions.
• Workshops: Interactive, hands-on workshops will equip small teams of students to explore and build innovative solutions at the intersection of generative AI and law. Participants will learn about cutting-edge generative AI tools and apply their knowledge to create novel solutions.
• AI Labs: Dedicated labs will allow students to explore various AI software tools relevant to the legal domain. These labs will provide premium access to advanced AI platforms such as Gemini, ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Claude, along with specialized Indian legal tools like Jhana and Jurisphere.
• Prompt Challenge: Students will compete in a challenge to create effective AI prompts for specific legal tasks, with the best prompts awarded cash prizes.

For this year’s edition, participation from outside the NLSIU community is by invitation only. If you are a law firm, a startup, or a legal professional interested in practical applications of AI in law and would like to participate, please contact Shruthi Nair at .

There will be two presentations by NLS Faculty at this week’s seminar by Siddharth Saxena and Radhika Chitkara.

Presentation 1

Title: “Instrumentalising the University: The Principles underlying Higher Education Regulation at India’s Founding” by Siddharth Saxena.

Discussant: Sidharth Chauhan

Abstract

The contemporary literature on Indian universities is rife with discontent about academic freedom. Apart from attacks within and outside the university on the production and dissemination of knowledge, the state has systematically undermined institutional autonomy using the University Grants Commission (‘UGC’) regulatory powers. This literature has grounded the crisis in developments post the election of Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party in 2014, particularly after their re-election in 2019. This article argues, instead, that it ought to be situated in a context predating the current regime. It can be traced to the instrumentalist idea of the university’s role in the postcolonial nation-state that was reified at its founding, and was expressed in the constitutional and statutory scheme created under Jawaharlal Nehru’s Indian National Congress. It explicates this through an analysis of the thought of political elites as revealed in the constitutional and legislative material associated with the creation of the UGC.

Presentation 2

Title: “Policing Per Se” by Radhika Chitkara.

Abstract

What is the character of police power? What is its relationship with law? And what makes it exceptional and extraordinary? A key intervention of this research is the attempt to study ‘police’- policing, police powers, police functions- on its own terms, or, ‘policing per se’. In this chapter, I do not attempt a common unifying theory of policing that both, captures its essence, and empirically addresses all that the police do in society. My approach accepts that different sites of police action reveal some facets of police power more than others. My attempt delineates coercion, discretion, knowledge-production and law as discrete facets of police authority that, in variable permutations, constitute police powers. These offer units of analysis through which I study norms and empirical data relating to counter-terror policing in this and subsequent chapters. I conclude the chapter by identifying a typology of three kinds of police powers based on the permutations generated by these discrete units in their interface with law, and read the UAPA within this typology: criminal police powers, administrative police powers, and inherent/ uncodified police powers.

This chapter proceeds in three parts. The first part cleaves apart policing from the law, through a careful excavation of discretion as a constitutive characteristic of police authority. It does so through a review of literature in anthropology, history and comparative law attempting to define the police. The second part studies police powers as epistemic authority creating knowledge about crime and society. The final part enlists the typology identified above as a menu of police powers through which to study UAPA. I do not study the capacity for coercion in meticulous detail since this paradigm already dominates studies of policing. I am sharing here only the first part of this chapter, on police discretion, which I identify at two registers: as gatekeepers and as sovereigns. The third part I have already presented at an earlier faculty seminar in 2023. This is the first draft, and is thus excessively lengthy and verbose. I will edit as I go along so that the first chapter, holistically, is of a manageable length.

Gallery

In this week’s faculty seminar, Dr. Atreyee Majumder, Associate Professor, Social Science, NLSIU and Kundan Sen, Senior Writing Instructor, Undergraduate Writing Programme, Ashoka University, presented their essay titled “Three Genres of India at the Limit: The Obsolete, The Ruinous, The Unfinished.” The seminar was held on April 9, 2025, at 3:45 pm, in the Ground Floor Conference Hall at NLSIU’s Training Centre.

Abstract

This essay studies India as a conceptual limit. Taking contemporary India as its starting point, it asks: what is the India-concept? We go to some limit-zones to find the answer. To analyse its location at the limit-zones of a concept, we focus on those narratives that develop when the vantage point is from the margins and not the dominant centres of the Indian experience. This essay posits that the India-concept can be understood through three distinct genres: the obsolete, the ruinous, and the unfinished. The obsolete unpacks India in its becoming-modern condition as constant acts of moving out of and maneuvering at the peripheries of circuits of value and motion. The ruinous looks at genres of living and being that are completely out-of-sync with dominant forms of living and being and attendant hierarchies of values. The unfinished looks at those futures that were never heralded, within the larger embrace of neoliberal modernity, but remain within horizons of expectation for groups of people. Collectively, these three genres, we argue, give us a sense of the limit-zones of the dominant versions of the India-concept.

Gallery

The National Law School of India University (NLSIU), Bengaluru and Singapore International Arbitration Centre (SIAC) are organising the second edition of the Annual Arbitration Lecture on Saturday, April 26, 2025, from 9.30 to 10.30 am. The venue of the lecture is Bangalore International Centre.

This year, we have Ms. Lucy Reed, a preeminent arbitrator and scholar speaking on: “Five Things You Think You Know About Arbitration, But You Don’t.”

This event is open to the public. Please note if you are outside of the NLS community, it is mandatory to register for the event. Kindly RSVP here.

About the Speaker

Lucy Reed is the President of the Court of Arbitration, Singapore International Arbitration Centre. Reed, an independent arbitrator with Arbitration Chambers (New York), is also the immediate past President of the International Council for Commercial Arbitration (ICCA). She retired in 2016 from Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer, where she led the global international arbitration group from the New York, Hong Kong and Singapore offices, and then was Professor of Practice and Director of the Centre for International Law at NUS through 2019.

In addition to practicing international commercial and investment treaty arbitration, she served as an arbitrator on the Eritrea-Ethiopia Claims Commission (a humanitarian law/Geneva Convention claims commission), co-director of the Claims Resolution Tribunal for Dormant Accounts in Switzerland (a Holocaust claims tribunal) and, while with the US State Department, the US Agent to the Iran-US Claims Tribunal.

Reed, a member of the US Council on Foreign Relations, is a former President of the American Society of International Law. She was educated at the University of Chicago Law School and Brown University.

Please note:

• All press/media invitees who are interested to cover the talk are requested to please carry their ID cards.