Exhibiting the journey of three developmental clinics through Posters, Infographics, Photo-narratives and Documentary Films
‘In Pursuit of Justice’ was a thought-provoking exhibition of the year-long engagement of three Developmental Clinics by the Law and Governance Specialization students at the Azim Premji University. The exhibition was held at the Vismaya Gallery of the Rangoli Metro Art Centre on MG Road on 23rdand 24th of April, 2016. This exhibition was an opportunity for the members of the three clinics to get public engagement and create awareness about the issues that they have worked hard to understand over the past 9 months. Also a part of the exhibition was a Panel Discussion on ‘Learning Through Developmental Clinics: A Conversation with Faculty Clinic Directors from Azim Premji University (Atreyee Mazumdar, Sitharamam Kakarala and Narayana A.) which was held on the evening of the 23rd. The panel and the exhibition were attended by persons from various walks of life and persuasions.
The Panel discussion was moderated by Abhayraj Naik, who asked the panelists some difficult and pointed questions regarding their roles as Clinic Directors, their pedagogic styles, the impact of their own political views on the clinics’ work, and their view of the role that working on the kinds of issues taken up during clinical field engagement plays in a climate where student activism is looked at warily.
Clinical Engagement forms a fundamental part of the Law and Governance Specialization in the M.A. Development program at Azim Premji University. Clinical Engagement incorporates well maintained observational interactions with the field to supplement primarily theoretical classroom learnings. Engagement through Clinical education exposes students to the requests, requirements and technical skills for managing unstructured circumstances, where the “issues” have not been pre-distinguished even in cases where the broader region of intervention appears to be clear. Therefore, these activities imitate the key difficulties confronted by developmental practitioners while simultaneously opening up potential outcomes for social justice, law reform, and the meeting of unmet developmental needs. Students cooperatively work with faculty supervisors to recognize an issue, create associations with stakeholders to comprehend the field, frame a strategy of intervention, and figure out ways to execute it.
Three Clinics based on different themes were operationalized this year in consideration with student interest – The Land Governance Clinic (LGC), The Local Governance Clinic (LOGC) and The Human Rights Clinic (HRC).
The Land Governance Clinic (LGC) of 2015-2016 has been working on governance of common lands, with specific focus on Amrit Mahal Kavals in North Karnataka. The Local Governance Clinic (LOGC) of 2015-2016 has been working on formulation, evaluation and implementation of Section 61a under the Karnataka Panchayati Raj Act. Nangali Gram Panchayat of Mulbagal Taluk at Kolar district is the intervention field of the Local Governance Clinic (LOGC). The Human Rights Clinic (HRC) of 2015-2016 has been working on death penalty with emphasis on death row convicts in the state of Karnataka.
The clinics had displays, photographs, infographics, maps and documentaries in English and Kannada. Their work can be accessed through the apulawandgovernanceclinics.wordpress.com
