Mita Mukherjee
Whoever walks along a path towards the side gates of West Bengal National University of Juridical Sciences (NUJS) off EM Bypass in Kolkata will never fail to notice a sight of hundreds of locks hanging on the barbed wires at the gate, some looking new and shiny whereas most appearing rust covered.
Hardly any passerby would know that these locks are remnants left by students after packing their bags on the last day at their hostel so that their stay at the institution is etched on their memories forever.
At every residential institution, students have a lock of their own to keep their belongings they carry to the hostel safe under lock and key.
Nearly five years ago, it was during a routine chat at a tea-stall in front of the law school’s side gate which is a favourite meeting place of the students, a boarder who was in his final year jokingly said that he will take all his belongings back home but he would not take back his hostel room lock which he wants to hang on the barbed wire on the boundary wall to remain connected with institution forever and also because he would want to see it every time he revisits the campus.
There was immediately an uproarious laughter but finally all those present there decided to make it a practice to latch the lock that they use during their stay at the hostel on the barbed wire before they say goodbye to the institution after completing their five-year LLB course.
Since then it has become a usual practice for every student to hang their locks on the barbed wire of the side gate and then leave the campus for start a new adventure of practicing law. After putting the lock, students throw the keys at a nearby bush so that the lock never gets opened.
Passersby would often wonder why so many locks hang on the gate.
“Many a times, practices that may not have any logical basis, find widespread acceptance and become a part of the culture and custom of the place. Likewise, in NUJS, hanging one’s lock on the barbed wires at the side gate has become customary for students who hang their college boots and graduate into the world of the practice of law. Scores of locks latching onto a barbed wire may evoke an inquisitive sight from the passersby, but that pretty much sums up the remnants of the students who spend half a decade of their lives living in, learning and falling in love with the institution,” Ankit Pal, an ex-student of the 2022 batch told EducationWorld.
Raksha Raina another former student said for all those who stay outside their hometown look forward to finding familiarity in little things on every visit back home.
“For all NUJS students, these locks are a memory of our time at the institution that lends familiarity every time we are home,” said Raina.
Anirudh Goyal, another student from the 2020 batch said he has also kept his lock at the side gate as a symbol of his “everlasting bond “ he developed with the institution.
“One important chapter of our life ends when we leave the institution. But our bond with the institution is everlasting. The lock that we leave behind is the symbol of the bond that can never break.” said Goyal.
Also read: West Bengal: NUJS receives Rs.1 Cr aid from MSME ministry to set up IP Facilitation Centre