Company : Sol Infotech Pvt. Ltd. Website : www.courtkutchehry.com ANDHRA PRADESH INSTITUTIONS OF LAW (REGULATION OF ADMISSIONS INTO COURSES IN LAW THROUGH COMMON ENTRANCE TEST) RULES, 1989 CONTENTS 1. Short title, Application and commencement 2. Definitions 3. Method of Admission 4. Eligibility Criteria for Admission 5. The Common Entrance Test 6. Preparation of merit list and assigning Ranking 7 . Procedure for admission into Government Colleges and Campus/constituent colleges of the universities 8. Procedure for Admission into private institutions 9. Allotment of candidates for admission 10. Rules of Reservation for admission 11. Constitution and Functions of the Entrance Test Committee ANDHRA PRADESH INSTITUTIONS OF LAW (REGULATION OF ADMISSIONS INTO COURSES IN LAW THROUGH COMMON ENTRANCE TEST) RULES, 1989 In exercise of the powers conferred by sub-section (1) of section 3 read with section 15 of the Andhra Pradesh Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admissions and Prohibition of Capitation Fee) Act, 1983 (Act No. 5 of 1983), and in supresession of all the rules in force on the subject, the Governor of Andhra Pradesh hereby makes the following rules relating to admission of students possessing Intermediate and Degree qualifications, into five years and three years under- Graduate courses in Law respectively through a Common Entrance Test called "Law Entrance Test (LAWCET)" 1. Short title, Application and commencement :- (1) These rules may be called the Andhra Pradesh Institutions of Law (Regulation of admissions into course in Law through Common entrance Test) Rules, 1989. (2) They shall apply to all the Colleges including those established and administered by the minority communities, imparting legal Education. (3) They shall come into force with effect from the Academic year 1989-1990. 2. Definitions :- (1) In these rules, unless the con otherwise requires: (a) "Act" means the Andhra Pradesh Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admission and Prohibition of Capitation Fee) Act, 1983 (Act No. 5 of 1983); (b) "Common Entrance Test" means the examination conducted for assigning merit ranking to the candidates which will be the basis for admission to 5 year Degree Course in Law and 3 year Degree Course in Law and for Intermediate and Degree holders respectively; (c) "Chairman" means the Vice-Chancellor of any University in the State nominated by the State Council for each Academic Year for the purpose of conducting the Common Entrance Test; (d) "Convenor" means the authority/officer appointed by the State Council for conducting the Common Entrance Test and for performing such other functions relating to the said examination as entrusted to him by the State Council in consultation with the Chairman; (e) "Entrance Test Committee" means the Committee empowered to conduct the Common Entrance Test and to prepare the merit lists of candidates in the order of marks obtained in the Entrance Test basing on which admissions into these courses will be made; (f) "Institution" means, unless other wise specifically mentioned all the Colleges, including those administered by the Minority Communities and those declared as State-wide Institutions, if any, imparting legal education (L.L.B. and B.L. Courses) either exclusively in Law Colleges or as a Course in a Degree College etc.; (g) "Inspecting Authority" means the authority/officer appointed by the Chairman for inspecting and scrutinising the admissions of the students made in the institutions including those belonging to the Minority Communities; (h) "Local Candidate" means the candidate in relation to the Local area as specified in Rule 10; (i) "Qualified Candidate" means the candidate who has appeared for the Common Entrance Test and has been assigned ranking in the Common Merit List; (j) "Qualifying Examination" means the examination of the minimum qualification prescribed passing/appearance of which entitles one to seek admission into the relevant courses; (k) "State Council" means the Andhra Pradesh State Council of Higher Education constituted under sub-section (1) of section 3 of the Andhra Pradesh State Council of Higher Education Act, 1988 (Act No. 16 of 1988); (l) "University" means the University concerned to which the campus/constituent College relates or the College is affiliated as the case may be, imparting legal Education (L.L.B. and B.L. Course). (2) Words and expressions used but not defined in these rules shall have the same meaning assigned to them in the Andhra Pradesh Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admission and Prohibition of Capitation) Fee Act, 1983. 3. Method of Admission :- The Under-graduate Courses in Law, namely, L.L.B. and B.L. will be of 3 years duration for the candidates possessing Degree Qualification in any faculty and 5 years duration for the candidates possessing Intermediate Qualification. The general guidelines for admission into these courses shall be as laid down below; (1) The admissions shall be made in the order of merit on the basis of the ranking assigned to the students in the Common Entrance Test conducted for the purpose called the "Law Common Entrance Test (LAWCET)". (2) The Principals of all the Private Colleges, including those administered by the Minority Communities, shall also admit candidates on the basis of the ranking assigned to them in the Common Entrance Test as allotted to them by the Entrance Test Committee. (3) The total number of candidates to be admitted in each Course, in each of the Institutions shall not exceed the strength sanctioned by the concerned competent authorities. (4) The admission of students made in various Private Institutions, shall be subject to scrutiny by the inspecting authority appointed for the purpose. (5) In respect of State-wide Institutions 85% of the seats in each Course in each institution shall be allocated among the three Regions of the State, namely, Andhra University Area (Andhra), Osmania University Area (Telangana) and Sri Venkateswara University Area (Rayalaseema) in the ratio 42:36:22 respectively and the balance of 15% seats shall be left for open competition. If any seats are unfilled in any region they may be filled up with other candidates in the order of merit ranking assigned in State wide merit list. 4. Eligibility Criteria for Admission :- Admission into Law Courses shall be governed by the rules of admission of respective Universities, in addition to the rules and regulations prescribed herein. The eligibility criteria for admission into Law Courses shall be as follows: (1) Nationality and Domicile: The Candidates should be Indian Nationals and should satisfy local/non-local status requirement as laid down in the Andhra Pradesh Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admission) Order 1974 and the amendments made thereon. (2) Educational qualifications for admission to Common Entrance Test : (a) 3 Year Law Courses:- Candidates seeking admission to Common Entrance Test for 3 year Law Course should have obtained degree qualification in any faculty awarded by the Universities in the State of Andhra Pradesh (or) should have appeared for the final year Degree Examination at the time of making application for the Common Entrance Test (or) any other examination recognised by any of the Universities in the State as equivalent to 3 years Degree (10 2 3); (b) 5 Year Law Course: Candidates seeking admission to Common Entrance Test for 5 Yeas Law Course should have acquired any one of the following educational qualifications or should have appeared for the qualifying examinations at the time of making the application for the Common Entrance Test. (i) 2 year Intermediate Examination (10 Plus 2 Pattern); (OR) (ii) Any other examination recognised by any of the Universities in this State or the Board of Intermediate Education, Andhra Pradesh, as equivalent to the Intermediate Course (10 Plus 2 Pattern). 5. The Common Entrance Test :- (1) The Common Entrance Test shall be conducted by the Convenor, appointed by the State Council, on such dates, at such centres as may be decided by the Entrance Test Committee. (2) (a) The Convenor shall make advertisement in the popular daily News Papers calling for applications, in the form prescribed by the Entrance Test Committee, from the candidates satisfying the eligilibility criteria laid down under rule 4. The advertisement, among other things, shall indicate the application fee payable, entrance test fee payable, the last date for the receipt of the filled in applications and the date of conduct of the Entrance Test. (b) The date for conduct of the entrance test as notified by the Entrance Test Committee shall not be revised without the prior approval of the Government. (3) The media of Entrance Test shall be English and Telugu. (4) The qualifying marks in the Entrance Test for general category of candidates shall be 35%. However, there shall be no minimum qualifying marks in respect of candidates belonging to the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. (5) The subjects for the Entrance Test and the syllabus for the Entrance Test shall be as prescribed by the Entrance Test Committee, from time to time. (6) No requests for re-totalling or revaluation or personal identification of the answer scripts of the Entrance Test shall be entertained. (7) Mere appearance at the Entrance Test does not entitle a candidate to be considered for admission into any course automatically unless the candidate (a) applies to the University concerned/Convenor as the case may be, and (b) satisfies all the conditions of admissions stipulated by the concerned University/Authority/Government. (8) If any ambiguity or doubt arises in interpretation or implementation of these rules, the decision of the Chairman of the Committee shall be final. (9) The Entrance Test fee, i.e., the fee to be collected from the students desirous of appearing for the Entrance Test shall be as prescribed by the Entrance Test Committee, from time to time. 6. Preparation of merit list and assigning Ranking :- The candidates who have secured qualifying marks in the Entrance Test and the candidates belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Communities to whom qualifying marks have not been prescribed, shall be assigned the ranking in the order of merit on the basis of the marks obtained in the Common Entrance Test; (1) For convenience at the time of making admissions the Entrance Test Committee shall prepare the following categories of merit lists for 5 years Courses and 3 year Courses separately; (a) State-wide Common Merit List:- This list shall include candidates irrespective whether one belongs to any category of reservation quota or not, basing on the marks obtained in the Common Entrance Test; (b) Region-wise Common Merit List:- This list includes candidates belonging to the particular local area irrespective of whether one belongs to any category of reservation quota or not basing on the marks obtained in the Common entrance Test; (c) Concerned Minority Community Merit List: They include merit list, containing the candidates belonging to the concerned Minority Community arranged in the merit ranking assigned in the Common Entrance Test both State-wide and Region-wise; (d) Community-wise Merit Lists:- There shall be separate Community wise merit lists for the Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Back-ward Classes Communities, both as State wide and Region wide lists; (e) Merit lists for other categories of reservation:- There shall be separate merit lists for other categories of reservations mentioned under sub-rule (6) of rule 10, both State-wide and Region-wise. (2) While preparing the merit lists, the following shall be the criteria:- (a) In case of tie in the marks obtained in the Entrance Test, marks obtained in the qualifying examination shall be taken into account to decide relative ranking; (b) In the case of the candidates getting equal marks in the qualifying examination causing further tie, they shall be braketed for the purpose of awarding of rank. At the time of admission, age should be taken into consideration for relative ranking among the braketed candidates and the older candidate shall be given priority. (3) The candidates who have been assigned ranking in the Merit ( ) g g List shall be issued "Rank Card". The Rank Card, among other things, shall contain the details of the category of Course to which the candidate is qualified and the rank assigned in the State-wide Merit Lists. 7. Procedure for admission into Government Colleges and Campus/constituent colleges of the universities :- (1) The University concerned shall make advertisements in the popular daily News Papers calling for applications from the candidates who have been assigned ranking in the Common Entrance Test, clearly indicating the last date for the receipt of the filled-in applications and the registration fee payable. (2) The candidates desirous of getting their names considered both as local and non-local candidates shall make applications separately to the University to which he is a local candidate and the other Universities to which he is a non-local candidate respectively. (3) No separate application is required for the consideration of admission into the State-wide Institutions, if any. The application made to the University for consideration as local candidate will also be considered for the purpose. 8. Procedure for Admission into private institutions :- (1) The Convenor of the Common Entrance Test shall make advertisement in the popular daily News Papers calling for applications in the prescribed form from the qualified candidates who have been assigned ranking in the Common Entrance Test, desirous of seeking admission into the Private Institutions including Minority Educational Institutions imparting 3 years Degree Course and 5 Years Degree Course. (a) The advertisement, among other things, shall indicate various documents to be enclosed along with the application, and various fees payable in favour of the concerned institution; (b) The advertisement shall also make it clear that the candidates belonging to the concerned community alone will be admitted into the Minority Educational Institutions basing on the ranking assigned to them in the Common Entrance Test and that the candidates belonging to the other Communities shall be admitted only against the left over seats, in the order of ranking assigned to them in the Common Entrance Test and further that, while admitting these candidates, the rule of reservation as laid down under rule 10 shall be followed. (2) The candidates who are qualified to seek admission as a consequence of obtaining ranking in the Common Entrance Test and desirous of seeking admission into the Private Institutions, including Minority Educational Institutions shall make application to the Convenor either in person or by "Registered Post Acknowledgment Due" enclosing all the relevant documents including a copy of the Rank Card issued to him. The applications shall be acknowledged. (3) The Convenor shall scrutinise all the applications received from the candidates desirous of seeking admission into the Private Institutions, including the Minority Educational Institutions. After scrutiny, the Convenor shall prepare two categories of merit lists namely:- (a) Common Merit List :- Containing the names of all the candidates, including those belonging to the Minority Community, arranged in the order of merit ranking assigned to them in the Common Entrance Test; (b) Community-wise Merit List :- Containing the names of the candidates belonging to the concerned community arranged in the order of merit ranking assigned to them in the Common Entrance Test, prepared separately for each of the concerned community taking into account the community to which the Minority Institution claims to belong. The candidates belonging to Minority Communities, other than the concerned Minority Community, shall be treated as of belonging to other non-minority communities for the purposes of admission into Minority Institutions (4) The seats in each of the private college shall be pooled up course wise and distributed among the three regions of the State as provided under sub-rule (1) (c) of rule 10. 9. Allotment of candidates for admission :- (1) Candidates who have secured higher ranks at the Entrance Test will be called for an interview in the order of merit for selection and allotment of Institutions, namely Government, Campus/Constituent Colleges of Universities and Private. For the convenience of the candidates, re-presentatives of all the Universities concerned and Principals of all Colleges concerned shall sit at a Common Table. As and when each candidate gets his turn for interview in the order of merit, choice of Institution will be given to him depending upon availability at that point of time with due regard to the eligibility of the candidate for a seat in a particular local area for a particular reserved/unreserved category. (2) The Convenor of the Entrance Test Committee shall be the Competent Authority to select and allot candidates for admissions into various institutions on the basis of the ranking assigned to them in the Common Entrance Test and subject to final approval by the Chairman. (3) (a) In respect of the Minority Institutions, candidates belonging to the concerned communities alone shall be admitted by following the provisions under sub-rule (1) (c) of Rule 10; (b) If candidates belonging to the concerned community from a local area fall short for making admissions in the prescribed ratio, candidates belonging to the concerned community belonging to other local areas can be admitted in the order of ranking in the concerned State-wise Merit List; (c) If there are no candidates belonging to the concerned community, in any local area, candidates belonging to other communities from the respective local area in order of merit, can be admitted, in which case, the rule of reservation as provided under rule 10, shall be followed. (4) The selection of candidates and allotment of Institutions in respect of the Private Colleges including those administered by Minority Communities, shall also be solely on the basis of merit as adjudged by the rank obtained in the Entrance Test subject to the condition that the candidates should have passed the qualifying examination, with the minimum marks prescribed for the Entrance Test. However, mere appearance at the Entrance Test and obtaining of high rank in the merit lists does not entitle a candidate to be considered for admission automatically into any Institution unless he also satisfies the rules and regulations of admission prescribed by the the concerned University and the Government including marks to be obtained in the qualifying examinations. (5) The nature of Courses (3 years or 5 Years) and the total number of candidates to be admitted, shall be as decided by the Government, from time to time. 10. Rules of Reservation for admission :- They shall apply to all Institutions including Private Institutions. (1) Region-wise reservation of seats:- (a) Admission to 85% of the seats in each course, excluding the seats which are exempted from the need of Common Entrance Test in any, shall be reserved for the local candidates and 15% of the seats shall be left over for Open Competition as specified in the Andhra Pradesh Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admission) Order, 1974 and the amendments made thereon; (b) In respect of State-wide Institutions, admission to 85% seats, excluding the seats which are exempted from the need of Common Entrance Test, in each Course, shall be reserved for the candidates belonging to the three local areas in the State, namely, Andhra University Area (Andhra), Osmania University Area (Telangana) and Sri Venkateswara University Area (Rayalaseema) in the ratio of 42:36:22 respectively and the balance of 15% of seats shall be left for open competition as specified in the Andhra Pradesh Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admission) Order, 1974 and the amendments made thereon. If any seats are unfilled they may be filled up with other candidates in the order of merit ranking assigned in the State wide Merit List. (c) (i) The seats in each private institution (including minority institutions) shall be pooled up course-wise and distributed among the three regions of the State namely Andhra University local Area (Andhra), Osmania University Local Area (Telangana) and Sri Venkateswara University Local Area (Rayalaseema) in the ratio 42:36:22 respectively. If seats belonging to any local area are left over, they may be filled up with other candidates in the order of merit ranking assigned in the State-wide Merit List. (ii) In respect of minority Institutions, candidates belonging to the concerned minority community from the respective local area shall be admitted. If sufficient number of candidates belonging to the concerned minority community from the respective local area are not available candidates belonging to the concerned minority in the order of merit ranking assigned in the State-wide Merit List, can be admitted. If any seats are still left over, they may be filled up with the candidates belonging to other communities from the respective local areas in the order of merit ranking, in which case the rule of reservation as prescribed under these rules shall be followed. EXPLANATIONS : (I) The Local Area :- (a) The part of the State comprising the Districts of Adilabad, Hyderabad (including Twin Cities) Rangareddy, Karimnagar, Khammam, Medak, Mahaboobnagar, Nalgonda, Nizamabad and Warangal shall be regarded as the Osmania University Local Area (Telangana). (b) The part of the State comprising the Districts of Srikakulam, Vizianagaram, Visakhapatnam, East Godavari, West Godavari, Krishna, Guntur and Prakasham shall be regarded as the Andhra University Local Area (Andhra). (c) The part of the State comprising the Districts of Ananthapur, Kurnool, Chittoor, Cuddapah and Nellore shall be regarded as the Sri Venkateswara University Local Area (Rayalaseema). (II) The Local Candidate:- (A) A candidate for admission shall be regarded as a local candidate in relation to the local area:- (a) If he has studied in an Educational Institution or Education Institutions in such local area for a period of not less than four consecutive academic years ending with the academic year in which he appeared or, as the case may be, appeared in the relevant qualifying examination; or (b) Where, during the whole or any part of the four consecutive academic years ending with the academic year in which he appeared or as the case may be appeared for the relevant qualifying examination he has not studied in any Educational Institution, if he has resided in that local area for a period of not less than four years immediately preceeding the date of commencement of the relevant qualifying examination in which he appeared or, as the case may be, appeared. (B) A candidate for admission to the course who is not regarded as a local candidate under Clause (a) in relation to any local area shall (a) If he has studied in Educational Institutions in the State for a period of not less than seven consecutive academic years ending with the academic year in which he appeared or, as the case may be, appeared for the relevant qualifying examination, be regarded as a local candidate in relation to (i) such local area where he has studied for the maximum period out of said period of seven years; or (ii) where the period of his study in two or more local areas are equal, such local area where he has resided last in such equal period; or (b) It, during the whole or any part of seven consecutive academic years, ending with the academic year in which he appeared or, as the case may be, appeared for the relevant qualifying examination, he has not studied in the Educational Institutions in any local area but has resided in the State during the whole of the said period of seven years, be regarded as a local candidate in relation to (i) such local area where he has resided for the maximum period out of the said period of seven years; or (ii) where the periods of his residence in two or more local areas are equal, such local area where he has resided last in such equal periods; (C) The following categories of candidates are eligible to apply for admission to the remaining 15% of un-reserved seats; (a) All the candidates eligible to the declared as local candidates; (b) Candidates who have resided in the State for a total period of Ten Years, excluding periods of study outside the State, or either of whose parents have resided in the State for a period of ten years excluding periods of employment outsides the State; (c) Candidates who are children of parents who are in the employment of this State or Central Government, Public Sector Corporations, Local Bodies, Universities and other similar Quasi- public Institutions, within the State; (d) Candidates who are spouses of those in the employment of the State or Central Government, Public Sector Corporation, Local Bodies, Universities and similar other Quasi-Government Institutions within the State and Educational Institutions recognised by the Competent Authority. (D) If a local candidate in respect of a local area is not available to fill any seat reserved or allocated in favour of a local candidate in respect of that local area, such seat shall be filled in as if it has been unreserved. For details, see the Andhra Pradesh Educational Institutions (Regulation of Admission) Order, 1974 and the amendments made thereon. (2) Reservation of Seats for S.C./S.T./B.C., communities : (a) 15% and 6% of seats in each course in each Institution shall be reserved for the candidates belonging to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes respectively. The seats reserved for Scheduled Castes shall be made available to Scheduled Tribes and Vice-Versa, if qualified candidates are not available in the category. If qualified candidates belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Communities are not available, the left over seats reserved for them shall be treated as unreserved seats and shall be filled by the candidates of general pool; (b) 25% seats in each course in each Institution shall be reserved for the candidates belonging to the backward classes and shall be allocated among the four group of Backward Classes as shown below; Group : A........... 7% Group : B........... 10% Group : C........... 1% Group : D........... 7% (3) Reservation of Seats for Women: (a) Subject to permissibility in the rules and regulations of admission of the respective Universities, 30% of the seats in each Course in each Institution shall be reserved in favour of Women Candidates for all categories, i.e., Open Competition, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Backward Classes Groups A, B C, D and Army Quota. This rule of reservation shall not be applicable if women candidates selected on merit in each category form 30% or more of the seats therein. When the number of women candidates falls short of this percentage, it would be made up by replacing the last selected male candidates by women candidates in that category; (b) In the absence of suitable women candidates the seats shall be filled in with men candidates. (4) Other Categories of Reservations: Seats shall also be reserved in each Institution in respect of the following categories to the extent indicated against each of them. However if suitable candidates are not available in any category, they shall be filled in with the candidates in Open Competition: 1% for physically Handicapped,1% for National Cadet Corps,1% for Games and Sports, 4% for the Children of Ex-servicemen and Defence personnel including the children of Border Security Force and the Central Reserved Police Force residing in Andhra Pradesh. 11. Constitution and Functions of the Entrance Test Committee :- The State Council shall constitute an Entrance Test Committee for conducting the Common Entrance Test for Selection of Candidates for admission into under graduate courses in Law of 3 Years and 5 y ears duration for which Degree and Intermediate are the qualifying examinations respectively. The Entrance Test shall be known as "Law Common Entrance Test" (LAWCET). The constitution and the functions of the Entrance Test Committee shall be as specified below:- (1) Constitution of the Committee: The Committee shall consist of the following:- (a) Chairman, who shall be Vice-Chancellor of any University, nominated by the State Council for each academic year for the purpose of conducting the Entrance Test; (b) One representative of each of the Universities to be nominated by the concerned Vice-Chancellor; (c) The Director of Higher Education, Andhra Pradesh, or his nominee not below the rank of a joint Director; (d) One Member to be nominated by the State Council; (e) Convenor of the Common Entrance test for the preceding year; (f) Convenor who should be of the rank of professor to be nominated by the State Council in consultation with the Chairman of the Common Entrance test Committee; (g) One Principal of a private Law College, to be nominated by the State Council, every year by turn. (2) Functions of the Entrance Test Committee: (a) The Committee: The Committee shall take decisions, on the following aspects of the Entrance Test, from time to time:- (i) Pattern of question Papers; (ii) Duration of the Test; (iii) Weightage and marks to be assigned to each paper; (iv) Syllabus content; (v) Centres for conducting the test; (vi) Dates of the test; (vii) Date of announcement of results; (viii) Norms for payment of remuneration for different items of works connected with entrance test; (ix) Fees to be collected from the candidates; and (x) such other issue or issues as may be referred to it by the Chairman of the State Council from time to time. (b) The Chairman: (i) The Chairman of the Committee shall preside over the meetings of the Committee. In the absence of the Chairman at the meeting, he may nominate one of the members to preside over the Committee Meetings; (ii) The Chairman of the Committee shall be the competent authority to appoint paper setters and moderators for the entrance test and to decide upon the printing press or presses at which papers are to be got printed. (c) The Convenor: The Convenor shall, subject to such directions as may be issued by the Chairman, discharge his duties in connection with the Entrance test. He shall be responsible for discharging the following functions. (i) Printing of application forms, instructions etc., to candidates; (ii) Issuing the notification inviting applications for the Entrance test; (iv) Appointment of Co-ordinators and Chief Superintendents and Observers for various centres of the Test; (v) Coding and De-coding of answer scripts; (vi) Appointment of examiners for the valuation of the answer scripts in consultation with the Chairman; (vii) Evaluation by spot valuations of the answer scripts; (viii) Payment of remuneration for various items of work relating to the Entrance Test and maintenance and submission of accounts to the State Council; (ix) Publication of results and despatch of Rank Cards to the qualified candidates; (x) Selecting candidates for admission into private Institutions. (3) Funds for the conduct of the Test: (a) The amounts collected from the candidates appearing for the Entrance Test towards cost of application form and the examination fee shall be directly credited to the Account of the State Council of Higher Education; (b) The Convenor will draw advance from the State Council to meet the expenditure for the conduct of the test and submit audited accounts after the admissions are completed.