Government Law College, Thiruvananthapuram also known as GLC Trivandrum is one of the institutions imparting graduate and post graduate

legal education in India Legal education in India generally refers to the education of lawyers before entry into practice. Legal education in India is offered at different levels by the traditional universities and the specialised law universities and schools only after c ...

. Affiliated to the

University of Kerala University of Kerala, formerly the University of Travancore, is a state-run public university located in Thiruvananthapuram, the state capital of Kerala, India. It was established in 1937 by a promulgation of the Maharajah of Travancore, Ch ...

, it is the second law college in

Kerala Kerala ( ; ) is a state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile regions of Cochin, Malabar, South Canar ...

and one of the oldest law colleges in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

. It was established in 1875 by the then Maharajah of the erstwhile Princely State of Travancore. Notable alumni of the college including Judges of

Supreme Court of India The Supreme Court of India (IAST: ) is the supreme judicial authority of India and is the highest court of the Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, has the final decision in all legal matters e ...

such as Justice Fathima Beevi, judges of High Courts, politicians, and academicians such as N. R. Madhava Menon.

History

The government of His Highness

Maharaja of Travancore The Maharaja of Travancore was the principal title of the ruler of the Kingdom of Travancore in the southern part of Kerala, India. The Maharaja of Travancore was the topmost ruler of Travancore until 1949, when Travancore was annexed into In ...

on 31 January 1875 sanctioned "the Organisation of a Law Class in connection with His Highness College at

Thiruvananthapuram Thiruvananthapuram (; ), also known by its former name Trivandrum (), is the capital of the Indian state of Kerala. It is the most populous city in Kerala with a population of 957,730 as of 2011. The encompassing urban agglomeration populati ...

to enable candidates from

Travancore The Kingdom of Travancore ( /ˈtrævənkɔːr/), also known as the Kingdom of Thiruvithamkoor, was an Indian kingdom from c. 1729 until 1949. It was ruled by the Travancore Royal Family from Padmanabhapuram, and later Thiruvananthapuram. At ...

to present themselves for the Law Examination of the

University of Madras The University of Madras (informally known as Madras University) is a public state university in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India. Established in 1857, it is one of the oldest and among the most prestigious universities in India, incorporated by an a ...

and to encourage others to pursue the study of Law systematically". The order sanctioning the scheme directed that it shall be worked on the same lines as the Class attached to the Presidency College at Madras. Mr. W. E. Ormsby, Barrister-at-law, then a Judge of Sadur Court of

was appointed Professor of Law in His Highness the Maharajas College. He opened the class on 9 February of the same year. In 1877, His Highness College was affiliated to the

in the Faculty of Law. The class was thus continued till 1894 when in conformity with important alterations in the by-laws of the Madras University regarding the B.L. Degree Examination, the institution was re-organised on an entirely different footing. The Law Class which till then was working as a part of His Highness College and the Professors whereof were treated as members of that College was raised to the status of an independent College under the designation of "His Highness Maharaja's Law College,

". A complete set of rules was also sanctioned by the Government for the control and regulation of work in the college. The rules prescribed the qualification required for the members of the teaching staff. The Law College was maintained by His Highness Government and the management of the college was vested in the Principal acting directly under the orders of Dewan of Travancore till the end of 1908. In 1909 the College was placed under the Director of Public Instruction and in 1910 it was placed under the control of the High Court. With the inauguration of

University of Travancore University of Kerala, formerly the University of Travancore, is a state-run public university located in Thiruvananthapuram, the state capital of Kerala, India. It was established in 1937 by a promulgation of the Maharajah of Travancore, Ch ...

in 1938, the College was transferred to the control and supervision of the University. In August 1949 the college was shifted to Ernakulam to fit in with the new set up arising out of the integration of erstwhile State of Travancore- Cochin and the location of the High Court of the united State at

Eranakulam Ernakulam () is the Central Business District of the city of Kochi in Kerala, India and has lent its name to the Ernakulam district. Many major establishments, including the Kerala High Court, the office of the Kochi Municipal Corporation and ...

. In 1954 it was again brought to

, leaving at Ernakulam a sister college and was housed in the current premises in the Highland Bungalow on the Barton Hill. Under the University Act of 1957, the college was transferred to the control of Government of Kerala. In 1961 Government made the

Law College a permanent institution. In 1962-63 a full-time Post-graduate course was introduced with M. L. Degree and LL.M was started in 1971. Three Year LL.B course was started from 1967-68 & Five Year

LL.B. Bachelor of Laws ( la, Legum Baccalaureus; LL.B.) is an undergraduate law degree in the United Kingdom and most common law jurisdictions. Bachelor of Laws is also the name of the law degree awarded by universities in the People's Republic of Chi ...

Course was introduced from the academic year 1984-85.

Campus

The Government Law College

is housed in the Highland Bungalow of Mr. Barton, British

Chief Engineer A chief engineer, commonly referred to as "ChEng" or "Chief", is the most senior engine officer of an engine department on a ship, typically a merchant ship, and holds overall leadership and the responsibility of that department..Chief engineer's ...

of erstwhile Princely State of

. Many new blocks were later added in the 5 acre beautiful green campus in the heart of the city.

Academics

Admissions

Admissions to both undergraduate and post graduate programs at the Government Law College Thiruvananthapuram are through a highly competitive entrance examination conducted by Commissioner for Entrance Examination,

Government of Kerala Government of Kerala is the subnational government of the Indian state of Kerala. The government is led by a chief minister, who selects all the other ministers. The chief minister and their most senior ministers belong to the supreme decision ...

Academic programmes

B.A., LL.B (Integrated) Government Law College

offers an undergraduate five-year integrated

program which, upon completion, qualifies the student to sit for the bar to practice law in India. This course is a double degree Integrated course comprising B.A (English) and LL.B degrees. The bachelor's degree in B.A. and Law shall consist of regular course of study for a minimum period of 10 Semesters in Five Years and shall consist of 14 papers in B.A. and 31 papers in Law. LL.B (3 year Course) Government Law College also offers a three-year

program which, upon completion, qualifies the student to sit for the bar to practice law in India. The course of study for the bachelor's degree in Law (LL.B) shall consist of regular course of study for a minimum period of 6 semesters in three years and shall consist of 20 compulsory papers, 4 compulsory clinical papers and 6 optional papers in Law. Masters in Law (LL.M) Government Law College offers post graduate Law degrees in two lines of specialization: ''Constitution Law & Criminal Law''. The normal duration of the LL.M. programme shall be four semesters. Government Law College Thiruvananthapuram was one of the few colleges to run a LL.M Programme in Constitution Law. LL.M (Evening Batch) Sanction accorded by Government of Kerala and orders issued to start a 20 student batch from 2015-16.

Library

Government Law College

library is one of the oldest

law library A law library is a special library used by law students, lawyers, judges and their law clerks, historians and other scholars of legal history in order to research the law. Law libraries are also used by people who draft or advocate for new la ...

in the country. The spacious and magnificent College Library is an important resource center, primarily intended to provide

undergraduate Undergraduate education is education conducted after secondary education and before postgraduate education. It typically includes all postsecondary programs up to the level of a bachelor's degree. For example, in the United States, an entry-lev ...

and postgraduate readers with the books they need for their studies. The Government Law College library is known for its rare collection of books and treatise on various subjects not limited to law. It holds over 27,000 books and 5000 periodicals. The library is fully automated, and book circulation is maintained through Library-cum-Identity Cards with the help of a barcode system. Noted academician and alumnus Prof. (Dr.) N.R. Madhava Menon promised handing over his collection of books to the college library, during his speech at the 140 years celebration of the college in March 2015.

Research Block

Research Center in Law status has been accorded to Government Law College

by the University of Kerala. The college has requested for the formation of a chair named ''Malloor Govinda Pillai Chair on Criminal Law'' . A proposal for formation of ''Justice K.K Mathew Chair on Constitutional Law'' is also pending with the government. Prof. (Dr.) N.R. Madhava Menon announced in March 2015 that he would be available to guide the research programmes at the college.

Student life

Hostel

The Hostel Block inaugurated by the then President of India, Shri.

Fakaruddin Ali Ahmed Fakhruddin Ali Ahmed (13 May 1905 – 11 February 1977) was an Indian lawyer and politician who served as the fifth president of India from 1974 to 1977. Born in Delhi, Ahmed studied in Delhi and Cambridge and was called to the bar from the In ...

as a men's Hostel is now converted as a Women's Hostel. The admission is made by the Warden for students from second year of study onward. The male students are now accommodated in a separate block at University Hostel for Men at

Palayam, Thiruvananthapuram Palayam or Cantonment, as it is locally known, one of the busiest localities in Thiruvananthapuram (also known as rivandrum), the capital of Kerala State in India">Kerala_State.html" ;"title="rivandrum), the capital of Kerala State">rivandrum) ...

Moot Court Competition

Government Law College

hosts an annual national level moot court competition- All India Moot Court Competition for Justice V.R. Krishna Iyer Trophy. Over the years, Government Law College

team excelled in various national level moot court competitions. Including winning the XV All India Moot Court Competition 2012 for Adv. T. S. Venketeswara Iyer Memorial Ever Rolling Trophy conducted by Govt. Law College, Ernakulam Moot Court Society. Winning multiple best memorial awards and individual awards.

Quizzing

The Government Law College quizzing team is well known in the quizzing circuits of Kerala. They brought glory to

by bagging the First Runner Up trophy in the 2013 National Youth Festival held at

Kurukshetra Kurukshetra (, ) is a city and administrative headquarter of Kurukshetra district in the Indian state of Haryana. It is also known as Dharmakshetra ("Realm of duty ") and as the "Land of the Bhagavad Gita". Legends According to the Pur ...

Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ar ...

. The team also got First Prize in South Zone Inter-University Youth Festival held at Bangalore in 2013. The Quiz Club hosts quiz within the college from time to time.

National Service Scheme

The

National Service Scheme The National Service Scheme (NSS) is an Indian government sector public service program conducted by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports of the Government of India. Popularly known as NSS, the scheme was launched in Gandhiji's Centenary yea ...

is an Indian government-sponsored programme under the Department of Youth Affairs and Sports of the Government of India. Government Law College

has two NSS Units. In 2012, ''Best Programme Officer'' of N.S.S. for

was awarded to Assistant Professor K. Hareendran of Government Law College

. The N.S.S. unit has been actively involved in many social service activities in rural area and has organised many legal aid and legal literacy programs in addition to forest conservation, environmental protection and blood donation camps

Student Publications

Government Law College Thiruvananthapuram magazine is brought out annually by the college union. The Student Editor is chosen by an electoral college consisting of all students of the college, and the Staff Editor is ''nominated'' by the Staff Council headed by the college Principal. Dr. N.R. Madava Menon was the student editor during 1954-55. Internal Quality Assurance Cell (I.Q.A.C.) is soon coming out with a student edited in-house journal devised to escalate the quality and to upsurge the academic talents of the student community. The Student Law Journal is aimed for the promotion of reading, writing and research among students and act as a powerhouse in outsourcing the craft and in optimizing the quality of the student community.

Notable alumni

Judiciary

Fathima Beevi M. Fathima Beevi (born 30 April 1927) is a former judge of the Supreme Court of India. Appointed to the apex Court in 1989, she became the first female judge to be a part of the Supreme Court of India, and the first Muslim woman to be appointed ...

, former judge,

, first female Supreme Court judge & 11th Governor of

Tamilnadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil language— ...

State * K. K. Mathew, former judge, Supreme Court of India * Cyriac Joseph, former judge, Supreme Court of India * B. Kemal Pasha, Honorable Justice,

High Court of Kerala The High Court of Kerala is the highest court in the Indian state of Kerala and the Union territory of Lakshadweep. It is located in Kochi. Drawing its powers under Article 226 of the Constitution of India, the High Court has the power to is ...

* P. Habeeb Mohamed, former judge, The High Court of Travancore (princely state) * N. Anil Kumar, Judge high court of kerala * Sathish Ninan, Judge High Court of Kerala * P. Somarajan, Judge High Court of Kerala * C. S. Dias, Judge High Court of Kerala * Padmanabhan Subramanian Poti, Judge, High court of Gujarath * T. V. Anilkumar, Judge High Court of Kerala * Justice K. Babu, High court of Kerala * P G Ajith Kumar, Honorable Justice, High Court of Kerala

Legislature

* V. R. Krishnan Ezhuthachan, Member of Cochin Legislative Council * A. Sampath,

Former Member of Parliament A former is an object, such as a template, gauge or cutting die, which is used to form something such as a boat's hull. Typically, a former gives shape to a structure that may have complex curvature. A former may become an integral part of the ...

* V. D. Satheesan, Leader of Opposition, Second Vijayan Government * N.K. Premachandran, Member of Parliament * Jose K. Mani, Member of Parliament * M. I. Shanavas, Member of Parliament * R. Sankara Narayanan Thampi, first speaker of

Kerala Legislative Assembly The Kerala Legislative Assembly, popularly known as the Kerala Niyamasabha, is the State Assembly of Kerala, one of the 28 states in India. The Assembly is formed by 140 elected representatives. Each elected member represents one of the 140 c ...

* K. M. Seethi, former speaker of Kerala Legislative Assembly * Mathew Kuzhalnadan, member of

* N. Sakthan, former speaker of Kerala Legislative Assembly * T.V. Rajesh, member of Kerala Legislative Assembly * P. C. Vishnunath,Member of Kerala Legislative Assembly * K. K. Ramachandran Nair, Former Member of Kerala Legislative Assembly * P. Aisha Potty, Former Member of Kerala Legislative Assembly * D. Damodaran Potti, former speaker of Kerala Legislative Assembly * K. A. Damodara Menon, Freedom Fighter, Journalist and politician

Government

* C. Achutha Menon, former Chief minister of Kerala * K.T. Achuthan, Former Minister for Transport & Labour, Pattom Ministry * E. Ikkanda Warrier, 3rd Prime Minister of Cochin * P. T. Chacko, Former Home Minister of Kerala * Ramesh Chennithala, former Home Minister,

* Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan, former Sports Minister, Government of Kerala * K. C. Joseph (Irikkur politician), former minister of rural development & cultural affairs * M. Vijayakumar, former Minister of Law, Government of Kerala * R. Sankar, former

Chief minister of Kerala The chief minister of Kerala is the chief executive of the Indian state of Kerala. In accordance with the Constitution of India, the governor is a state's ''de jure'' head, but ''de facto'' executive authority rests with the chief minister. Fol ...

* P. K. Vasudevan Nair, former Chief minister of Kerala * C. Kesavan, former Chief minister of Travancore-Cochin (princely state) * M. N. Govindan Nair, former minister, Government of Kerala * T. M. Jacob, former minister, Government of Kerala * Mathew T. Thomas, former minister, Government of Kerala * G. Sudhakaran, former minister, Government of Kerala *

E. Ahamed E. Ahamed (29 April 1938 – 1 February 2017), Edappakath Ahamed in full, was an Indian politician from Kannur (then Cannanore) in northern Kerala. A Member of Parliament (Lok Sabha) between 1991 and 2017, he was a key figure in India's diploma ...

, former

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In ot ...

, External Affairs * M. B. Rajesh, Minister for Excise Government of Kerala *

Kodikunnil Suresh Kodikunnil Suresh is an Indian politician and working president of Kerala Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC). He was a Minister of State in the Ministry of Labour. He is a member of the seventeenth Lok Sabha representing Mavelikara in Kerala. ...

, former Minister of State, Labour * Mullappally Ramachandran, former

, Home Affairs

Bureaucrats

* N. R. Madhava Menon, former ISS officer, founder of

National Law School of India University The National Law School of India University (NLSIU or simply NLS) is a public law school and a National Law University located in Bangalore, Karnataka. It was the first National Law University to be established in India as well as one of the f ...

, N.U.J.S. and N.J.A * V. Joseph Thomas former Indian police chief * Abdul Sathar Kunju (1963 Batch),

Indian Police Service The Indian Police Service ( IPS) is a civil service under the All India Services. It replaced the Indian Imperial Police in 1948, a year after India became Partition of India, independent from the British Raj. Along with the Indian Administ ...

officer and Ex-

Kerala Police The Kerala Police is the law enforcement agency for the Indian state of Kerala. Kerala Police has its headquarters in Thiruvananthapuram, the state capital. The motto of the force is "Mridhu Bhave Dhrida Kruthye" which means "Soft in Temperament ...

Chief *

Malayattoor Ramakrishnan K. V. Ramakrishna Iyer, better known by his pen name, Malayattoor Ramakrishnan (27 May 1927 – 27 December 1997), was an Indian writer of Malayalam literature, cartoonist, lawyer, judicial magistrate, and Indian Administrative Service (IAS) o ...

, former IAS officer and award-winning writer * T P Sundararajan, Former officer in National Intelligence Bureau

Malayalam Film Industry

* Resul Pookutty,

Oscar Oscar, OSCAR, or The Oscar may refer to: People * Oscar (given name), an Irish- and English-language name also used in other languages; the article includes the names Oskar, Oskari, Oszkár, Óscar, and other forms. * Oscar (Irish mythology), ...

award winner *

Bheeman Raghu Bheeman Raghu (born 6 October 1953) is an Indian actor, singer, dancer, former politician and police officer (retired) who appears mainly in Malayalam films and is best known for his villainous and comedy roles. In a career spanning over three ...

, actor and police officer *

Anoop Menon Anoop Menon (born 3 August 1976) is an Indian actor, director, screenwriter and lyricist. He worked in television before acting in Malayalam films and has acted in more than 75 films. Menon won the Kerala State Film Award for Best Supporting A ...

, actor, script writer *

Shankar Ramakrishnan Shanker Ramakrishnan is an Indian film screenwriter, director, producer and actor, who works primarily in the Malayalam cinema. Career He started his career immediately after completing post-graduation from the School of Management Studies, C ...

, actor, script writer *

Karamana Janardanan Nair Karamana Janardanan Nair (25 July 1936 – 24 April 2000) was a Malayalam film actor, who was active during the 1980s and 1990s. He was especially known for his character roles. He won wide acclaim especially for the role of the protagonis ...

, Actor

Others

* K. M. Mathew, former Chief Editor,

Malayala Manorama ''Malayala Manorama'' is a morning newspaper in Malayalam published from Kottayam, Kerala, India by the Malayala Manorama Company Limited. Currently headed by Mammen Mathew; it was first published as a weekly on 22 March 1888, and currently h ...

* Aiyappan Pillai, Senior Lawyer in Bar Council of India, One of the First Councillor of

Thiruvananthapuram Corporation Thiruvananthapuram Municipal Corporation (തിരുവനന്തപുരം നഗരസഭ) is the oldest and the largest (by area and population) city corporation in the Kerala state of India. It is the municipal corporation that administ ...

. * Joy Thomas, President Kerala Cooperation Consumer Federation Limited. * K. C. Kesava Pillai, Poet Laureate of Travancore and was known for Kesaveeyam, a mahakavya in Malayalam, two attakathas and several bhajans and kirtans

Popular culture

Shaji Khailas directed and Ranji Panicker scripted,

Suresh Gopi Suresh Gopi (born 26 June 1958) is an Indian actor, politician, playback singer and television presenter. He works predominantly in Malayalam cinema and has also appeared in some Tamil, Telugu, Kannada and Bollywood films. Suresh made his act ...

starring block buster film Thalasthanam revolves around the politics of Government Law College

. Shooting also took place in Government Law College for K. Madhu directed

Jayaram Jayaram Subramaniam, (born 10 December 1965) known mononymously as Jayaram, is an Indian actor who predominantly appears in Malayalam,Tamil films, along with a few Telugu films. He is also a chenda percussionist, mimicry artist, and occasion ...

starring movie Randam Varavu.

References

External links

* {{Official website, http://www.glctvpm.com Law schools in Kerala Colleges in Thiruvananthapuram Colleges affiliated to the University of Kerala Educational institutions established in 1875 1875 establishments in India Academic institutions formerly affiliated with the University of Madras