Maharashtra National Law University Mumbai (MNLU Mumbai) today hosted its Project Initiation Ceremony and Special Felicitation of the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India, marking a historic milestone in the establishment of the University’s permanent campus at Goregaon (W), Mumbai. The ceremony was graced by eminent dignitaries from the judiciary, government, bar and academia.
Hon’ble Shri Devendra Fadnavis, Chief Minister of Maharashtra felicitated the Chief Guest, Hon’ble Shri Justice Bhushan R. Gavai, Chief Justice of India and Chancellor of MNLU Mumbai and presented a manpatra (citation of honour) to him. The event was held in the august presence of Hon’ble Shri Justice Shree Chandrashekhar, Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court and Pro Chancellor, MNLU Mumbai; Hon’ble Mrs. Justice Bharati Dangre, Judge, Bombay High Court; Hon’ble Mr. Justice Sandeep V. Marne, Judge, Bombay High Court; Hon’ble Shri Shivendraraje Bhosale, Minister of Public Works Department, Maharashtra; Hon’ble Dr. Birendra Saraf, Advocate General of Maharashtra; Hon’ble Smt. Suvarna Kishor Keole, Principal Secretary and RLA, Law and Judiciary Department, Government of Maharashtra, along with senior government officials, members of the Bar and academia.
MNLU Mumbai, established under the Maharashtra National Law University Act 2014, commenced its academic programmes from 1st August 2015 from the rented premises of Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Deonar, Mumbai and later, in 2017 from the Centre for Excellence in Telecom Technology and Management (CETTM), MTNL, Powai. The Government of Maharashtra has allotted 35 acres of land for the construction of the campus at Pahari Goregaon. The project initiation of the campus symbolised the commencement of the university’s journey towards establishing a world-class campus dedicated to advanced legal education and research.
Prof. (Dr.) Dilip Ukey, Hon’ble Vice Chancellor, MNLU Mumbai felicitated the dignitaries and welcomed the guests. In his welcome address, he appreciated the support of the judiciary and government for granting land to the university in the heart of Mumbai city. He also stated that it is a proud moment for the university to finally initiate its campus project and laid down the vision of the university to be a hub of the world class legal education in India. He also read the citation of honour (manpatra) for the Chief Justice of India highlighting his achievements in the legal landscape.
Speaking at the ceremony, the Hon’ble Chief Minister emphasised on this project as a landmark moment for MNLU Mumbai and the legal education in Maharashtra. He noted that Maharashtra is the only state in the country to have three National Law Universities and emphasized that MNLU Mumbai, which was the first NLU of the state, will now witness the development of its most advanced and prestigious campus. He spoke about the long and challenging journey of securing the land and obtaining all development clearances. The Chief Minister assured that the new campus will evolve into an internationally recognized law university, aligned with the National Education Policy and embedded within the upcoming EduCity in Mumbai.
Hon’ble Shri Justice Shree Chandrashekhar, Chief Justice of the Bombay High Court and Pro Chancellor, MNLU Mumbai, thanked the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India and the State Government in the vision behind the project and stressed on the importance of education in public life.
Delivering the Presidential Address, the Hon’ble Chief Justice of India extended greetings on Guru Purab and invoked Guru Nanak’s teachings of equality and social justice as guiding principles for legal education. He expressed deep appreciation for the Government of Maharashtra for allocating a prime land parcel for the university and commended the Chief Minister for ensuring rapid progress of the legal projects in the state. Recalling Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s view that lawyers are social engineers, he stated that students graduating from this university will become torchbearers of social transformation. He further emphasized that the world-class infrastructure being planned matches leading international standards and will provide students with the practical, experiential ecosystem essential for modern legal education. At last, he also gave his best wishes to the students and faculty of the MNLU Mumbai for their future journey.
Prof. (Dr.) Prakash Chaudhary, Registrar of MNLU Mumbai delivered a vote of thanks emphasising the contribution of all the stakeholders in this journey. He also thanked M/s Hiten Sethi and Associates, the architectural company for designing the model.