President Pranab Mukherjee today said the country needs lawyers who are professionally competent and faithful to the principles enshrined in the Constitution.
He made this observation when he met a group of 59 law students from Hooghly Mohsin College of West Bengal at Rashtrapati Bhawan here.
"The President said as students of law they (visiting students) will have tremendous responsibility to try to protect and preserve the Constitution. To uphold our Constitution and apply our sound laws, we need lawyers who are professionally competent and faithful to the letter and spirit of the principles enshrined in our Constitution and its Articles.
"He said that they can be the guardians of the fundamental rights of our citizens. As lawyers they will play the role of taking justice to the people," a statement from the President's House said.
Mukherjee said the college to which the students belong "has produced many illustrious luminaries, judges and legal practitioners like Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay. He stated that it is imperative for the students to have a very thorough understanding of our political system, its institutions and processes".
The students are in the national capital as part of their educational visit to observe the proceedings of the Supreme Court.
