Raipur law students clinch national title, with Rashleen Kaur Saluja named Best Speaker and Devesh Mishra adjudged Second Best Speaker
TFP Bureau, Raipur, July 7,2026: Hidayatullah National Law University (HNLU), Raipur, added another feather to its cap by winning the 9th Dastur National Direct Tax Moot Court Competition, a prestigious national-level event organised by Government Law College, Mumbai, in collaboration with The Chamber of Tax Consultants.
The winning HNLU team comprised Devesh Mishra, Rashleen Kaur Saluja and Asmi Chandrakar, all third-year students of the B.A. LL.B. (Hons.) programme (Batch of 2029). The team impressed judges with its advocacy and legal research skills throughout the competition.
The preliminary and quarter-final rounds were conducted online on June 13, while the semi-finals were held at the Income Tax Appellate Tribunal (ITAT), Mumbai. The final round took place at Government Law College, Mumbai, on June 27.
Apart from lifting the championship trophy, the HNLU team received a cash prize of ₹12,000. Rashleen Kaur Saluja was adjudged the Best Speaker and awarded ₹5,000, while Devesh Mishra secured the Second Best Speaker title along with a cash prize of ₹3,000.
Congratulating the students and faculty moot mentors, including Anindya Tiwari, Vice-Chancellor V. C. Vivekanandansaid the university’s consistent success in national and international moot court competitions reflects its strong emphasis on experiential legal education.
He attributed the achievement to HNLU’s innovative Moot Clinic initiative, introduced in place of conventional mid-term examinations for advocacy-oriented courses. The programme, he said, provides students with practical training in legal research, drafting, oral advocacy and courtroom skills through simulated litigation exercises and continuous assessment.
“Mooting is not merely a competition but an essential component of legal education. The Moot Clinic has enabled our students to develop research aptitude, persuasive advocacy, teamwork and professional ethics in ways that traditional examinations cannot. These consistent national achievements reaffirm HNLU’s commitment to practice-oriented and outcome-based legal education,” Prof. Vivekanandan said.
The university congratulated the winning team for bringing national recognition to the institution and acknowledged the contribution of faculty members and moot mentors in nurturing advocacy excellence among students.
