The International Society of Public Law (ICON•S) is an association of scholars of public or constitutional law. Its membership consists of scholars drawn from across the world in all fields of law and beyond to the humanities and social sciences, and at all levels of seniority, from students to sitting judges of apex courts to emeritus faculty. The predominant focus of this society is on constitutional or public law, but it also encompasses many other areas of the law.

Faculty members from the National Law School of India University participated in the Annual Conference of the (ICON•S), which was held in Dublin, Ireland from 29th June to 1st July, 2026. Convened at the beautiful campus of University College Dublin, the principal host was the UCD Centre for Constitutional Studies. The theme for this year’s conference was ‘Reimagining public law for a Fractured world – Technology, Identity and Truth’.

The three-day Annual Conference offered a forum for the global community of public law scholars, judges, and practitioners to gather, exchange ideas, and build collaborations. The conference featured plenary events, parallel panels, and social events to make the world of public law more global, more inclusive, and more connected. This was one of the biggest conferences of the society, featuring 2,088 participants who presented their work across 601 sessions.

Highlights of the research papers presented by NLSIU faculty members.

Aparna Chandra, Professor (Law)
Prof. Aparna Chandra was part of a Panel titled ‘Transformative Constitutionalism in India and the EU: Showcasing Slow Comparison Between Continental Politics’

Paper Title: A “Swadeshi” Transformative Constitutionalism in India
Read the abstract here.

Salmoli Choudhury, Assistant Professor (Law)
Dr. Salmoli was part of a Panel titled ‘Gandhian Thought as an Alternative Decolonial Constitutional Imaginary in India”

Paper Title: Civil Resister’s Law: Gandhi and the Making of Anticolonial Political Jurisprudence
Read the abstract here.

Hrishika Jain, Assistant Professor (Law)
Hrishika Jain was part of the Panel titled ‘ Liberal Constitutionalism and Its Critics’

Paper Title: The ‘Scandalous’ Social Life of the Indian Constitution: Taking Constitutional Theory Beyond Legalism
Read the abstract here.

Arun Thiruvengadam, Professor (Law)
Prof. Thiruvengadam was part of a Plenary discussion, a Panel and also a book Roundtable.

Plenary Discussion | The Fragility of Academic Freedom
Academic freedom is increasingly contested across different political and institutional contexts. Universities face growing pressures from governments, political movements, social media, and public debates over free speech, discrimination, and the role of higher education. Bringing together Adrienne Stone (Melbourne Law School), Arun Thiruvengadam (National Law School of India University), Aslı Ü. Bâli (Yale Law School) and Christoph Möllers (Faculty of Law, Humboldt University), this session examined contemporary challenges to academic freedom, including controversies surrounding student protests, institutional autonomy, the regulation of teaching and research and declining public trust in universities. They were in conversation with ICON.S Co-President Michaela Hailbronner.

Panel | Indian Constitutional Theory
Paper Title: India’s Unfolding Constitutional Moment (with Parv Tyagi)
Read the abstract here.

Book Roundtable | The Failures of Others – Justifying Institutional Expansion in Comparative Public and International Law.
Prof. Arun was one of the discussants in the book roundtable.
Read the details here.

Know more about the conference at ICON•S Annual Conference | Law Conference | ICON•S

References:

Conference Programme (Brochure):
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pWZRA4-gdsDRtLEW3p3kleywvtTfLEyq/view?usp=sharing

Abstracts:
https://virtual.oxfordabstracts.com/event/74960/titles

ICON.S Society:
https://www.icon-society.org/