With the court giving its go-ahead, students can appear for the National Law Admission Test (NLAT)-2020 on Saturday. This entrance test is the gateway to the five-year B.A. LLB (Honours) programme and one-year LLM programmes at the prestigious National Law School of India University, Bengaluru.
According to NLSIU, Bengaluru, 27,500 candidates are eligible to appear for the test. As many as 120 seats are available for the B.A. LLB (Hons) programme and 50 seats are available for their LLM programmes.
The test was mired in controversy as the university announced its own test 10 days ago and decided that admissions would not be based on the Common Law Entrance Test (CLAT) scores as there was a delay in conducting CLAT this year because of the pandemic. The Consortium of Law Universities had taken objection and asked the university to reconsider holding the test, saying that failing this the varsity would be removed from the consortium.
Following criticism that the test was “exclusionary” as many students did not have the necessary infrastructure to take the test, the university relaxed the technical specifications and also facilitated access to 35 centres where the test will be held.
Meanwhile, the university also released an examination integrity announcement and said that any evidence of exam malpractice would be taken seriously and would result in disqualification. For any assistance, candidates can call 080-47189145.
Unable to give simulation test
Many candidates who have registered for the National Law Admission Test and were to take the simulation test on Friday were unable to log in as they received the email about their test after the test had started. Some candidates said they were not able to login and move past the verification stage. Many candidates also took to social media and posted emails sent by the university after the test had started.
One of the candidates said, “I am extremely worried and hope the same thing will not happen tomorrow. If not, I will have to waste an entire year.”
Another candidate said that she could not log in as the system did not recognise her face. Many candidates also complained that the proctor did not identify malpractices.
However, university authorities said all those who received emails late for the test were given an option to take another simulation test at 8 p.m. The university further said the simulation test was not mandatory. All students were given a chance to attend at least one simulation test.
The helpline was active throughout the day on Friday. However, to assure students who may have concerns about accessing the helpline, more than 115 staff will be available to man the helplines for technical assistance on Saturday when NLAT 2020 is conducted, said the authorities.
With regard to facial recognition issues, candidates have to comply with the instructions given to them in the candidate guide regarding the format of the ID card to be produced during the test, they said.
