Free ‘GP Sir’s Law Classes’ help poor, marginalised students become judges

CHANDIGARH: Shrishti (name changed), 31, hails from the Valmiki community based in Gurdaspur, Punjab; she was born into a family of safai karamcharis and at 21, married into another. For her, ‘GP Sir’s Law Class’ is a ray of hope and a way out; Shrishti aims to be a judge.

The ‘GP’ stands for Gurvinder Pal Singh, chairman of the Punjab and Haryana Bar Council in 2010, member for another three years and a total of 35 years of practising law. Shrishti – she doesn’t use a last name – joined in 2023 and at present, there are 140 students like her enrolled in GP Sir’s Law Class.

Singh, 65, trains them to clear the state Provincial Civil Service Judicial Exam (PCS J), an entry-level exam for law graduates to become members of the subordinate judiciary in Punjab, Haryana, and some neighbouring states. In addition to coaching them, he also furnishes food, rent and books to those who can’t manage these on their own.

The PCS J exam is conducted by the state's Public Service Commission and involves three rounds: a pre-examination test, mains and an interview. The law classes began in 2019 but have seen remarkable success. In just the last two years, 23 aspirants from extremely poor and marginalised backgrounds have cracked the exam; 14 of them cleared in just 2023.

That’s how Shrishti heard of him. “One day in November 2023, after reading about the coaching, I called GP sir and told him about my dream of empowering women from my community and wanting to prepare for PCS exams. Within a week, my hostel was arranged and I was added to the main group of learners. While my in-laws refused and my parents didn't have enough money for my coaching, it was just GP sir’s support that gave me a ray of hope in my dark universe,” she said.

Young women from rural parts of Punjab and Haryana, whether married or single, get little support from families in their pursuit of education and careers. In GP Singh’s classroom are young women who have worked as domestic help, are survivors of domestic violence and those raised by single parents. Indeed, most are students whose parents are workers under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), roadside vendors, factory workers, marginal farmers, rickshaw pullers, and landless farmers.

In consequence, many of the rank-holders are also the first women from their communities to even pursue law, let alone clear a state-exam. Singh’s way of teaching and the homely, friendly environment have helped. He opened a new centre for a batch of 200 students in Sector 17 of Chandigarh this year.

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PCS Exam: How GP Sir’s classes began

The initiative began in 2019 with two students, in Singh’s chamber at the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Chandigarh.

“They were looking for coaching to prepare for state PCS exams,” recalled Singh. “I agreed to give coaching to these students just because of my colleague who refused to teach them. They had approached the colleague for an internship to pay their coaching fees. I thought it would be great to help these students.”

However, he soon realised that there were most students who aspired to join the judicial services but couldn’t afford the cost of preparation. Singh decided to expand and within a few days, had 20 students from among the historically-marginalised castes and communities coming to his chamber. They had completed their school and higher education supported by the government’s post-matric scholarship for Scheduled Castes. Several of them cleared the exam in 2021 and 2023. Now, he teaches more than 100.

In 2021, six had cleared the exam and 14 the next year. In 2023, as many as 18 students cleared the mains exams, qualifying for the interview round. By October, 14 had been selected.

The wall at the new institute's entrance features a massive poster highlighting the stories of all the toppers. The poster titled ‘The Diamonds in the Crown of GP Sir’s Class’ had female students in majority. “Many of these students are girls from extremely poor backgrounds whose parents are domestic workers, rickshaw pullers or working in similar jobs. But after getting selected in judicial services, their whole villages and district have now received a ray of hope,” added Singh.

Singh doesn’t just teach his students. He provides for their stay, food and learning materials as well, paying from his own pocket until last year.

One of his first students to clear the exam, Gurnam Singh (name changed), said, “GP Sir agreed to teach us when he saw students like us, who cannot afford the hefty fees of traditional coaching institutes. Sir goes an extra mile and ensures every student's doubts and education are taken care of.” Gurnam comes from a low-income family in Hoshiarpur, Punjab; he lost his father, a serviceman, at 18. He asked for his name to be changed as he is currently posted in Pathankot where he’s training for his role as a judicial officer.

But the most support is extended to women students from poor families. GP Singh had in his class a young woman whose fee and stay he paid for but who still worked as a domestic help to contribute toward rent in Chandigarh. “She even washed utensils for a three-day wedding to ensure she could give some money for her stay,” he said.

Moved by her story, Singh decided to teach all girls for free.

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PCS J Coaching: The 50:50 model

With so many securing high ranks after attending Singh’s classes, word started getting around. Many more wanted to join. Singh worried about commercialisation. It made students from all backgrounds believe that with or without pay, “GP sir’s coaching class will make students judges”.

“This is dangerous because I don't want to claim and not give results, like other conventional coaching institutes,” said Singh. Plus, he was running out of space. Earlier, he was teaching at home or in a small room taken on rent near his house.

From 2023, Singh changed his “model”. He decided on a 50:50 ratio of paid and freeship students. The income would also cover rent for the classes’ new premises in Sector 17 which opened in February 2024. Sector 17 is Chandigarh’s shopping hub and, in consequence, rents are high. But it is also the only spot that’s easily accessible to all. “There are hardly any good spaces which can accommodate 150-200 students and have low rent. I am not earning from this training,” explained Singh.

Currently, 60-70 students in a batch of 200 are paying a fee of Rs 1 lakh per year. “Currently, we have 140 students from marginalised and poor backgrounds and 60 students are paid. We also look after the stay of many students who do not have enough money for food, let alone stay,” he said.

Those who crack the exam and land jobs contribute toward the training of the next batch. Nine toppers are now sponsoring nine other students.

Identities of those studying for free are kept confidential; no one knows who is paying or studying for free. This requires some tact and Singh deals with it by providing books free to all.

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Student volunteers

The classes also rely heavily on student volunteers and peer learning. There are specific classes of subjects like criminal law, Indian Penal Code and others. “But what makes the class different from other traditional coaching is student-driven teaching as many times teachers don't explain from the point of view of students,” said a student, who did not want to be named. There is healthy competition where everyone helps each other, he added.

Hardik Kaushal hails from Batala; a graduate of Rajiv Gandhi National University of Law (RGNUL) Patiala, he comes from a family of lawyers and is currently a student and volunteer who teaches Constitution at GP Singh’s centre. “In the class, there are no paid teachers but only student volunteers who are picked by Sir (GP) to teach students a specific subject they have good knowledge of.” After spending two years in Delhi, Kaushal joined the centre in 2023 where, he believes, teaching is also helping him learn. Shrishti, too, volunteers as an English instructor.

Singh added that his main focus is on enabling students to learn along with a command over language. “Because so many come from extremely poor backgrounds, our first goal is to ensure all the students have a command over languages. Hence, every day, we have a one-hour language class where English and Hindi are taught,” he added.

Singh said that traditional coaching institutes focus just on bright students and not on the rest. But his classes focus on clearing concepts. Puneet Kaur, another student who volunteers as a teacher added, “ GP sir’s class every child is under Sir’s supervision, where he is approachable and clarifies every doubt.” Kaur echoed Kaushal saying that teaching helps her understand her subject “more deeply” and boosts her confidence as well.

Singh is more a mentor than teacher. “I give direction to students rather than forcefitting them with knowledge. They have the freedom to study. Peer reviewing of tests, group discussion and student volunteers are the key features of this class,” he explained. “Whenever I see a student lacking confidence, I ensure that the student's confidence is boosted and it can only be boosted once they are good at speaking in a class.”

Currently, there are three student volunteers teaching alongside Singh.

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Expansion plans

Singh believes it's easy to crack the PCS J exam if students get proper guidance and the right environment. “I don't leave my students at any time. And this class is more like a family and not like a business or a typical coaching. We have a dedicated space for all students willing to study despite class or caste. Our education system requires more mentors and not teachers,” he said.

In the long run, he wants to take his training to tribal students of Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand where opportunities are negligible. “I want to reach students of tribal areas .... through online classes,” he said. “As many judicial seats are vacant in these areas because students don't get opportunities, I want to go beyond the boundary of the state of Punjab and especially support students who cannot afford and teach them for free.”