Increasing Diversity by Increasing Access
Empowering underprivileged and marginalised children through legal education
A nation-wide movement
IDIA seeks to empower underprivileged and marginalised communities by creating top quality lawyers from within. Founded by legal academic, late Prof. (Dr.) Shamnad Basheer, it runs on the backbone of more than 600 passionate student volunteers spread across India.
Our Law for All Program Outreach
Introducing IDIA
How we do it
Law for All
IDIA student volunteers travel across India to identify and reach out to underprivileged students, making them aware of the power of the law and the range of career options that await them.
Training
Once selected, the students (“IDIA Trainees”) undergo free training including classroom coaching from India’s leading law entrance coaching centres, that enables them to ace entrance exams.
Making Champs
For students who crack the exams, IDIA supports their entire legal education and provides training, mentoring, and other assistance for the “IDIA Scholars.”
Our Impact
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238,261
1000
plus students rigorously trained for the leading law entrance examinations
270
IDIA Scholars admitted to top Indian law schools
45
IDIA Scholars with disabilities
students reached out to and made aware of law as a career option
These are not incidental beneficiaries. Each student was reached by an IDIA volunteer in a government or vernacular-medium school, most often in a rural district, tribal block, or first-generation learner household where no practising lawyer has ever set foot. For most, it was the first time anyone had told them the profession was open to them.
In most cases, these scholars are the first lawyers their families have ever known, drawn from SC, ST, OBC, and EWS households across India’s most underserved districts. They now practise in leading courts, law firms, and public institutions, and four have joined the Indian judiciary. The legal profession is beginning, gradually, to reflect the country it is meant to serve.
These scholars contend with a double barrier: socioeconomic disadvantage compounded by disability in a system that has rarely accommodated either. Through its Disability Access Programme, IDIA provides tailored academic support at every stage of the journey. Theirs is not a story of overcoming disability but of what becomes possible when an institution decides, deliberately, that no one gets left at the door.
Female IDIA Scholars
Target Goal for 2026
TARGET
100,000
Students
REACHED SO FAR
22,964
Students
PROGRESS
22.96%
of our goal
22,964 / 100,000 Students Reached
Last Updated: May 19, 2026
From Our Partners
IDIA is a wonderful initiative working towards increasing the much needed diversity and inclusivity in our law schools in particular and the legal fraternity in general. Hopefully, the day will soon arrive where our premier law institutions will actually be a reflection of the real India. Associating with and supporting the IDIA project has been one of the most enriching experiences of my life.
Mr. Sajan Poovayya
Poovayya & Co.
There are two experiences which I will always be grateful for – one was personally knowing the brilliant Shamnad Basheer, a great visionary. The second would be getting the opportunity to provide support to his vision. The Increasing Diversity by Increasing Access project empowers marginalized communities from within by opening the doors of the best law schools in the country to children from these communities. In its relatively short existence it has made an impact and enriched a lot of lives.
Mr. Ameet Datta
ADP Law Offices
Having been associated with IDIA for quite some time now, I have witnessed the organization grow over the years to become one of the pillars of inclusion in legal education in the country. Many IDIA scholars, who otherwise would not have had the access, have gone on to do remarkable things after graduating, from being gold medallists in the best law school in the country and finding a place in the best universities in the world, to fighting for the socio-economic rights of the marginalized and oppressed communities they come from.
Mr. Aditya Vikram Bhat
Founder – AVB Chambers
The IDIA project aims at increasing diversity in law schools and the larger legal ecosystem. They are doing a commendable job in identifying, training and supporting brilliant young minds from the margins of society for a mainstream legal career. It’s a pleasure to support the IDIA project.
Mr. J Sagar
J Sagar and Associates
Over the years, I have had the wonderful opportunity to support IDIA for the promise I made to my dear friend Shamnad, the cause it supports and the tangible change it has brought about in lives of several hundred scholars and the society at large. While the support thus far has been from my personal capacity, our firm KRIA Law would be supporting IDIA in the times to come.
Mr. MS Bharath
Kria Law
IDIA’s journey is reflected in the stories of its large pool of scholars who come from far flung places in the country, facing social challenges and inequities often unheard of. I’ve personally had the chance to interact with some of the IDIA scholars through our internship programme at Ashlar Law. Their zeal is touching and inspiring at the same time. Ashlar Law is proud to support the work of inclusion and diversity undertaken by IDIA.
Mr. Souvik Bhadra
Ashlar Law
Upcoming Law for All sessions