CLAT 2026: The Paper That Rewarded Readers, Not Rote Learners

CLAT 2026 At a Glance

CLAT 2026 question paper contained 21 passages and 120 questions across all five sections. It was a lengthy paper which rewarded readers. Each section required reading passages or argumentative text materials.  

CLAT English: 5 passages, 24 questions

The five passages in CLAT English were on diverse topics. One passage came from Bipin Chandra’s popular book, India’s Struggle for Independence; another came from Francis Fukuyama’s The Origins of Political Order; and the remaining three were fiction and non-fiction. Among these, George Orwell has consistently featured in CLAT in the last three years. 

CLAT English Analysis

All these sections required reading and comprehension skills. The first section did include some elements of factual history related to the non-cooperation movement, but the questions were carefully designed not to test rote memorisation.

CLAT Current Affairs: International Relations Dominate

The CLAT current affairs section has repeatedly featured topics from international relations in recent years. A passage around the BRICS summit was featured in 2025. Next year, a full passage covering the SCO summit was given. In fact, three of five passages, accounting for 17 out of 28 questions, were based on topics of foreign policy or international relations. The passages were taken from primary materials such as PIB, ministerial statements, and press releases. 

This gives a hint to prospective candidates: read all major topics around foreign policy and international relations, such as the BRICS Summit 2026, World Economic Forum, G20, Greenland, NATO, Venezuela crisis, US-Iran war, energy and food security.

Legal Reasoning: Three SC Judgments, Constitution and Political Debates

5 passages with 30 questions were asked from this section in CLAT 2026. Of these, one passage was an extract of a SC judgment and two passages were taken from The Hindu editorials discussing different SC judgments and their implications. Prior knowledge of Law was not required for answering questions in this section. However, familiarity with legal current affairs and constitutional provisions helped students.

Of the remaining two passages, one was extracted from a research article published by Carnegie Endowment, while the second passage was based on B. Shiva Rao’s Framing of India's Constitution discussing the drafting of the Preamble. 

The takeaway is that editorials, judgments and research articles are crucial; answers are given within the passages. However, for passages based on the Constitution or the political system, some factual knowledge will be helpful.

CLAT Legal Reasoning

Logical Reasoning

This section stayed text-heavy, with passages ranging from 150 to 269 words, making reading skill a prerequisite while still testing argumentative skills, puzzles or fact situations.  

A notable departure from the previous years was that no passage in this section was borrowed from any editorial or journal. All passages appear original, signalling a shift in how CLAT tests these skills. 

Maths

Over the last three years, this section has repeatedly tested ratio and proportion, percentage, growth, seating arrangements and averages. Mastering these skills would be crucial for aspirants. An advantage of having this section is that the answers are objectively clear, so disputes are rare. The recent reform report released by Justice Indu Malhotra Committee also notes that maths has been one of the least disputed sections in CLAT, though it suggests testing more skills. 

The Common Thread

Although each section is designed to test different skills, English reading skill appears as a common thread across all sections. The legal and logical reasoning sections sometimes test overlapping skills. This is a widely recognised issue with CLAT, and the reform committee has recommended removing the logical skill section once the new pattern is adopted. The quantitative section is relatively narrow in scope and focuses on limited data and numerical problems, which often require interpretation. 

For CLAT 2027, prospective candidates should prepare around the current format while keeping the previous year's question paper as a crucial reference point. With the question paper being centred around intensive English reading skills, candidates should practice comprehension-based questions sourced from news, editorials, journals and fiction.