This Kerala girl is pursuing Law from Oxford to gain an international perspective

Girl from Kerala studies Law at Oxford, wants more scholarships to be introduced to support Indian Law students take the road less travelled
Born to banker parents, Gayathree Devi Kalliyat Thazhathuveetil travelled all of southern India while schooling. That is when she realised the need to understand the global focus on human rights and legal process.She forayed into the world of Law as she completed her BA-LLB (Hons) from Gujarat National Law University marching out with five gold medals.
Gayathree enrolled for her MPhil in Law at Oxford in 2018, focussing on the issue of accountability for human rights violations in contested territories. "Studying at Oxford gives me a perspective on how Law is enforced in the courts in different countries," says Gayathree, who is associated with Oxford Transitional Justice Research Group, Oxford Pro Bono Publico and Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development.
Recipient of Ratanshaw Bomanji Zaiwalla Law Scholar, Gayathree was welcomed as a member of the cohort of scholars at the Oxford India Centre for Sustainable Development (OICSD).
"There was no separate application process for the scholarship. It is offered each year to one graduate student from India applying for either the Bachelor of Civil Law (BCL) or the MSc in Law and Finance (MLF) at Oxford," adds Gayathree. The scholarship is tenable only at Somerville College at Oxford. "BCL is one of the most expensive courses offered at the University of Oxford. If I had not received the Zaiwalla Law Scholarship, I would not have taken up my place on the course and would have consequently lost out on some incredible academic and career opportunities," she adds.
The biggest achievement for Gayathree has been to participate in moots on human rights advocacy including the Nelson Mandela World Human Rights Moot Court Competition 2019 held at the United Nations Office in Geneva.
"Oxford sealed my interest in research on the influence of international law on the enforcement of human rights, particularly in conflict-prone zones. So, I will be focussing on the issue of accountability for human rights violations in contested territories," says Gayathree. The world, she says needs "more human rights lawyers, who are not only incisive but also deeply compassionate."