Nagpur’s Abhinav Somani stood first in prestigious Common Law Admission Test (CLAT) in the country. CLAT is conducted for the admissions to 22 National Law Universities and some private and self-financed law schools. Abhinav is first from the city who stands probable national topper in CLAT.

Though Abhinav did a planned study and was sure of being among toppers, he had never expected that he would stand national topper in CLAT. “I checked my result at least 15 times to ensure it was me. It was my father whom I first informed about my achievement. Obviously, I checked result from his cellphone while he was standing beside me,” said exhilarated Abhinav while talking to ‘The Hitavada’.

Abhinav is a Class XII student of Centre Point School, Wardhaman Nagar. He scored 93.8% in Class X. His parents are doctors- father Dr Abhishek Somani, Professor and Head, Department of Psychiatry at Indira Gandhi Government Medical College and Hospital (IGGMCH), and mother Dr Aditi Somani, a well-known Gynaecologist. His younger brother Aditya is a student of Class IX in Centre Point School, Wardhaman Nagar.

“I have a background of doctors as my parents, grandparents are in the medical field. I was a bit confused about choosing career. My father suggested me to study Law. On his suggestion, I took admission in Humanities in Class XII in the same school. I read some law books and also developed interest in Political Science. While reading basic theory of law, I generated interest in the field and discovered, everyone talks about Law but very few really understand it. Finally, I decided to appear in CLAT,” said Abhinav while sharing his journey in the field of Law.

In a meticulous manner, Abhinav planned his study. He had to balance Class XII examination which he would write in March-April 2023 and CLAT. CLAT has five subjects--English, General Knowledge, Legal Reasoning, Logical Reasoning and Mathematics. He found General Knowledge and Mathematics difficult. “General Knowledge has no fixed syllabus and to write its answers one has to keep oneself updated. English, I found the easier one as I have been in touch with it since childhood,” said Abhinav.

Abhinav scored 116.75 marks out of 150. He used to get up at 4.30 am daily and studied for CLAT till 7.30, his school-going time. After returning from school at 2 pm, Abhinav engaged himself again in preparing for CLAT. At 9 pm to 11 pm, Abhinav used to complete his Class XII homework and related study. He lived in a disciplined manner and that helped him score big. At the same time Abhinav did not shy away from his hobbies. An avid reader and music and movie buff, he pursued hobbies as per his routine. He reads classics by almost all authors but his favorite writer is Leo Tolstoy. Now, CLAT is over, he aims to completely focus on preparing for Class XII exams.