Savitribai Phule Pune University: Law Students Appeal to Ease-up the Marking System

The severe marking system of the Savitribai Phule Pune University (SPPU) has given sleepless nights to a lot of law students studying in various city colleges. Students are worried that they might have to repeat a year as the university is not backing down on the strict marking system.

Several students are failing the exams by 4-5 marks and have been requesting the authorities to grant them grace marks. As per the Exam Related Ordinances 1 to 4, students failing by up to a few marks are awarded grace marks. The university that earlier use to practice this ordinance has refused to follow it this year. As a result of this students face a threat of losing an academic year.

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Dr. Sunita Adhav, Principal, Modern Law College said that the overall result has been affected as 76 of the students enrolled for the course are failing. She also said that the requests have been made by them asking the university to grant grace marks.

A similar assessment of the situation was given by the Principal of Marathwada Mitra Mandal’s Shankarrao Chavan Law College, Dr. Kranti Desmukh. 100 students of the college are expecting grace marks. Dr. Shubhada Gholap, Principal, Yeshwantrao Chavan Law College said that students are desperate for help.

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A second-year law student, Ankur Borwankar, DES Law College said that he is passing in all subjects but scored less in one subject in the first year. Since the requirement to pass to the next year is minimum 50% marks, he requires 450 marks out of 900 while he has scored 446. He is falling short by 4 marks and is depending on the grace marks to get onto the next year or he will have to lose one year.

Swapnil Chandere is another student who is depending on the grace marks to pass onto the next year. He is falling short of 7 marks to move ahead to the next year. Balaji Law College’s student Alpesh Vegad is also falling short of 3 marks to advance to the second year and says that the university is being unfair by not granting grace marks.

Students have also been complaining that grace marks as per the ordinance were not given to them even though engineering students were provided with the grace marks to advance to the next year.

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The university authorities have conducted meetings with the law college principals. A Principal said that the university has asked them to stop granting grace marks as a lot of RTIs were filed by people accusing the university that they had been boosting the results of students.

Examination Controller of the university, Dr. Ashok Chavan, said that the legal department has been evaluating the interpretation of the Ordinance.

Vice-Chancellor, Wasudeo Gade also said that the students eligible to pass with grace marks in line with the Ordinance must be considered to be promoted to the next year. The university has been making necessary efforts to offer a just solution to the students.