Call for Articles & Blogs by Project 39A, National Law University Delhi (Blogs 800-1500 Words, Articles 2500-3000 Words)

Project 39A is a research and legal aid centre at National Law University Delhi, inspired by Article 39-A of the Constitution of India, which furthers the intertwined values of equal justice and equal opportunity by removing economic and social barriers. It began as the Centre on the Death Penalty, established at NLU Delhi in 2014, and now works across five areas of practice: forensics, legal aid, mental health, the death penalty and custodial torture. The centre provides pro bono representation to death row prisoners at all levels of the judiciary and conducts empirical and interdisciplinary research on the criminal justice system.

Project 39A welcomes original Articles and Blogs that contribute constructively to criminal law, policy and institutional reform. Its publication platform is intended as a forum for high-quality public scholarship that informs legal debate, supports policy development and encourages critical engagement with contemporary issues surrounding the criminal justice system.

The submission portal on the Project 39A website accepts pieces under six categories: Articles, Blog, Analysis of Bills, Explainers, Interviews and Research Brief.

Submissions are accepted on themes relevant to the criminal justice system, including but not limited to:

• Capital punishment
• Legal aid
• Access to justice
• Custodial violence
• Mental health
• Forensics

The editorial team remains equally receptive to submissions exploring other questions that lie within, intersect with, or emerge at the boundaries of the criminal justice system.

Contributions are invited from a diverse pool of writers working on or engaging with the criminal justice system or allied fields, including but not limited to lawyers, students, academics, researchers, journalists and other practitioners from allied disciplines.

Co-authorship is permitted for up to two authors.

• Word count: 800-1500 words for Blogs and 2500-3000 words for Articles. Exceptions may be made if deemed appropriate by the editors.
• Title: a clear, descriptive title that communicates the topic and conveys the essence of the piece.
• Formatting: Times New Roman, size 12, single spaced, with 1-inch margins.
• Author bio: 50-100 words, submitted as a separate section at the end of the document.
• Anonymised body text: the body of the submission must not contain the author's name or other identifying details; these should appear only in the author bio.
• Author photograph: a small headshot for the byline is optional but encouraged.

Every submission should present original arguments supported by accurate legal authorities, empirical evidence or other reliable sources, and should maintain high standards of academic integrity. Project 39A publishes for a diverse readership, so contributors are asked to write in simple language, explain technical concepts where necessary and communicate complex ideas without unnecessary jargon.

• Use hyperlinks in the text to direct readers to online sources such as statutes, judgments, reports and articles. Where hyperlinks cannot be used, references should follow the latest edition of the American Psychological Association (APA) style.
• All facts, figures and quotations must be accurate and traceable to an identifiable source.
• Submissions are currently accepted only in English, though Project 39A is working to expand to other languages.
• All submissions must be original and unpublished. Artificial Intelligence-generated submissions will not be accepted, and any use of AI tools, including in research or writing, must be disclosed. Failure to disclose will result in immediate rejection.
• In-body images are welcome where they add value, provided the contributor owns them, has permission from the rights holder, or the image carries a licence permitting reuse, with the source stated at the time of submission.

All submissions must be sent through the Articles & Blog section of the Project 39A website at www.project39a.com, using the Submit an Article/Blog form. Contributors are asked not to send submissions through any other channel. The form takes the author's name, email, title, category, affiliation, a brief description, an optional link to the full piece and an optional PDF upload of up to 10 MB.

The last date of submission is 30 August 2026.

There is no submission or publication fee, and the call does not state any honorarium or payment for accepted pieces.

Every submission is reviewed by Project 39A's editorial team, and compliance with the guidelines does not guarantee publication. Authors may be asked to revise their work, but an invitation to revise does not constitute acceptance; editorial decisions on acceptance, revision and publication are final. Owing to the volume of submissions the team may not respond to each contributor individually, and contributors who receive no response within 30 days should consider the submission rejected on that occasion. The website's confirmation message indicates a review turnaround of four to six weeks.

Contributors retain copyright in their submissions and confirm that the work is original, unpublished and not under simultaneous consideration elsewhere. A published piece may be cross-posted 48 hours after first publication, with prior permission from the editorial team and credit to the Project 39A Blog as the original place of publication. Where a piece is accepted there may be a delay between acceptance and publication while the team manages copy flow.