Gulbarga university has made an unique beginning,  which may go a long way in transforming the legal education of the country.

With the formal launching of the new post graduation course (LLM) in `Bharateeya Nyaya Darshan and Raja Dharma’ from this academic year here on Thursday, the ancient Dharmashastra seeks to integrate with the mainstream modern law education. The course to be launched by governor  T N Chaturvedi, is the joint venture of Gulbarga university and the Vijnaneshwara Research and Training Institute, Martur, near here.

The course anywhere in India it is the brainchild of former chief justice of Punjab and Harayana high court Justice M Rama Jois, who has taken a lot of pain to frame the syllabus.

Dr Rama Jois who is instrumental in establishing the Institute at Martur, in memory of Vijnanehswara, the legendary author of `Mitakshara’, a commentary on the Yajnavalkya Smrithi. Mitakshara is the corner stone of Indian jurisprudnecne in general and the Hindu law in particular and Vijnanehswara who wrote his magnum opus in the 12th century is regarded as the Father of Indian Jurisprudence.

It is only the Mitakshara school of justice which had prevailed all over the country since medieval period and is found still relevant.

The University Grants Commission has already sanctioned the `Centre for Studies in Vijnanehswara’s Mitakshara and Human Rights’ in the Gulbarga university.

Bharateeya Nyaya Darshan and Raja Dharma went in to wilderness during the foreign rule for about a millennium, first by the Muslim and latter by the English.

With the introduction of Anglo-saxon jurisprudence the study of the vast Indian ancient and valuable legal system did not form part of the syllabus in the law degree courses.

In its place came the Roman Law which was done away with in 1966 by the Bar Council of India by substituting Indian Legal and Constitutional History.

But the greatest problem was non-availability of books,  still Dr Rama Jois came out with his magnum opus `Legal and Constitutional History of India’ in 1982 in two volumes. This is the only book recommended by BCI as the text for law degree course.

The Special Officer of the proposed Karnataka Law University Dr J S Patil said it was high time India reverted back to its ancient time tested `Dharmashastra’ and the Gulbarga university has made the right beginning in the 60th year of India’s independence. 

``We should have our own legal system based on our dharma based polity’’ Dr Patil said.