AILET 2021 Question Paper was conducted by National Law University, Delhi (NLU Delhi) on 30 July 2021 for admission to the BA LLB (Hons.) and LLM programmes. The exam comprised 150 MCQs across English, General Knowledge, Legal Aptitude, Logical Reasoning, and Elementary Mathematics, making it the final AILET paper to follow the five-section pattern before the 2022 revision.
AILET 2021 Question Paper and Answer Key PDF provide valuable insight into the final five-section exam pattern before its revision in 2022. I
AILET 2021 question paper was conducted on NLU Delhi's long-standing five-section format, with negative marking. The details of AILET 2021 Exam Pattern are set out below.
| Particulars | Details |
|---|---|
| Mode | Offline (Pen-and-Paper, OMR-based) |
| Exam Date | 30 July 2021 |
| Timing | 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM |
| Duration | 90 Minutes |
| Total Questions | 150 |
| Total Marks | 150 |
| Marking | +1 per correct answer; −0.25 per wrong answer |
AILET 2021 Section-Wise Structure, including four of the five sections carried an equal 35 marks each, while Elementary Mathematics had only 10 questions, a small but rank-deciding section
| Section | Questions | Marks |
|---|---|---|
| English Language | 35 | 35 |
| General Knowledge | 35 | 35 |
| Legal Aptitude | 35 | 35 |
| Logical Reasoning | 35 | 35 |
| Elementary Mathematics | 10 | 10 |
| Total | 150 | 150 |
While recent papers test three sections, AILET 2021 question paper divided its questions across five, and that breadth is exactly what separates it from every paper set from AILET 2022 question paper onwards.
| Feature | How AILET 2021 Stood Out |
|---|---|
| Section count | Five sections, versus three today |
| Legal Aptitude | Present as a standalone section |
| Mathematics | Included (10 arithmetic-based questions) |
| Duration | 90 minutes, shorter than the current 120 |
| Place in the timeline | The last paper before the 2022 three-section revamp |
The most weighted topics in AILET 2021 were concentrated across English, Legal Aptitude, Logical Reasoning, and General Knowledge, reflecting the emphasis of the final five-section exam pattern.
| Section | Dominant Area | Approx. Questions |
|---|---|---|
| English | Reading Comprehension, Vocabulary, Grammar | ~35 |
| General Knowledge | Current Affairs (with a little Static GK) | ~35 |
| Legal Aptitude | Legal Principles and Reasoning | ~35 |
| Logical Reasoning | Critical and Analytical Reasoning | ~35 |
| Elementary Mathematics | Arithmetic (percentage, ratio, time-speed-distance) | ~10 |
The most repeated concepts in AILET 2021 highlight the core areas that consistently received weightage under the five-section pattern. Many of these concepts continue to influence question design in the revised AILET format.
| Recurring Concept | Roughly How Often |
|---|---|
| Recent Current Affairs | 30 questions |
| Reading Comprehension | Across most of the English section |
| Legal Principles / Legal GK | A steady share of Legal Aptitude |
| Syllogisms, Analogies, Series | Core of Logical Reasoning |
| Arithmetic Fundamentals | ~10 questions |
The skills that proved most valuable in AILET 2021 question paper aligned with the exam's emphasis on reasoning, legal aptitude, language proficiency, and general awareness. Consistent accuracy and efficient time management played an equally important role in overall performance.
| Skill | Why It Counted |
|---|---|
| Reading Speed | Cleared the passage-heavy English section faster |
| Current-Affairs Awareness | Unlocked the easy, high-return GK marks |
| Legal Reasoning Basics | Made the Legal Aptitude section manageable |
| Quick Calculation | Secured the short Mathematics section |
| Time Management | Kept 150 questions within the tight 90 minutes |
AILET 2021 question paper showed that the quality of practice mattered more than the sheer volume of material used. Best Resources for AILET 2021 Preparation include:
| Resource | Value for This Paper |
|---|---|
| Previous-Year Papers | Very High |
| Legal Aptitude & GK Compendiums | High |
| Mock Tests | High |
| Monthly Current-Affairs Digests | High |
| English Practice Sets | Moderate |
Even with a different format, AILET 2021 question paper still offers takeaways that hold up today.
Attempting AILET question paper now is a useful history lesson as much as practice, because several sections have since disappeared.
| Area | What You Will Observe |
|---|---|
| Overall Format | Five sections, unlike today's three |
| Legal Aptitude | Once separate, now folded into reasoning |
| Mathematics | Present then, removed from the current paper |
| Logical Reasoning | Still central, and larger in recent years |
| Current Affairs & GK | Continues to be a scoring section |
Because of these shifts, AILET 2021 question paper is best used to understand how the exam evolved and to rehearse English, GK, and reasoning question types not as a model of the current three-section paper.
| AILET Previous Year Question Paper | |
|---|---|
| AILET Question Paper 2026 | AILET Question Paper 2025 |
| AILET Question Paper 2024 | AILET Question Paper 2023 |
| AILET Question Paper 2021 | AILET Question Paper 2020 |
| AILET Question Paper 2019 | AILET Question Paper 2018 |
| AILET Question Paper 2017 | AILET Question Paper 2016 |
Ques: Why is AILET 2021 called the last of the old-format papers?
Ans: It was the final AILET set on the five-section format: English, GK, Legal Aptitude, Logical Reasoning, and Mathematics before NLU Delhi switched to a three-section paper in 2022.
Ques: What was the marking scheme in AILET 2021?
Ans: Every correct answer earned one mark and every wrong answer lost 0.25, with no penalty for questions left blank.
Ques: Is AILET 2021 paper still useful for current preparation?
Ans: Partly. It no longer matches the current three-section format, but it remains handy for practising English, general knowledge, and reasoning question types.
Ques: What was considered a good score in AILET 2021?
Ans: A score around 75 was regarded as decent, while the General-category cut-off was expected in the region of 95, reflecting the exam's steep competition.
Ques: What is the biggest difference between AILET 2021 and the current exam?
Ans: AILET 2021 had five sections, including separate Legal Aptitude and Mathematics parts, in 90 minutes, whereas today's exam runs three sections in 120 minutes.
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