Bombay HC Grants ILS Law College Students One-Time Relief, Allows Semester-End Exams Despite Attendance Shortage

Mumbai, August 11, 2026: In relief to students of ILS Law College, Pune, the Bombay High Court on Monday allowed those barred from semester-end examinations due to shortage of attendance to appear for the examinations.

A bench of Justices Riyaz Chagla and Farhan Dubash said the relief would be available as a "strictly one-time measure" for the 2025-26 academic year. The court also extended the benefit to other similarly placed students who had not approached the court.

The court was hearing petitions filed by around 41 students from different years of the three-year and five-year law courses. Their attendance was between 46 per cent and 54.37 per cent, while they had been barred from appearing for examinations because of the shortage.

Supreme Court Order Relied Upon

The bench relied on a July 21 order of the Supreme Court, which had given one-time protection to law students whose academic session was ongoing when the Delhi High Court had passed its November 2025 order on attendance requirements.

The college and Savitribai Phule Pune University argued that the Supreme Court's relief applied only to students appearing for the final examinations of three-year and five-year LLB courses. The High Court disagreed.

It said students studying in earlier years could also lose an entire academic year if they were stopped from appearing for their semester-end examinations. Therefore, students from the first, second, third and fourth years would also be covered by the Supreme Court order.

Relief Limited To Current Session

The High Court also said the Supreme Court had not fixed any minimum attendance percentage for students covered by its one-time protection. The college and university, therefore, could not impose another attendance cut-off for granting the relief.

The court, however, made it clear that the order would apply only to the 2025-26 academic session and would not dilute attendance rules for future years. Students will continue to be required to meet the applicable attendance requirements.

The court also confirmed the interim relief already granted to students who had appeared for their examinations. Their results and marksheets will be issued.

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For students who could not appear, the university and college have been directed to hold supplementary examinations within four weeks. These examinations will be treated as part of the 2025-26 academic session, and students will not have to repeat the semester only because of the attendance shortage.

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