The National Students' Union of India (NSUI) has demanded Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) administration to ensure “proper” reservation in M.Phil/PhD admissions. The JNU Students' Union (JNUSU) has been demanding the same since long but with NSUI stepping in the matter, the former's voice will get echoed with greater frequency.
“The JNU administration is flouting constitutionally mandated reservation quotas for the oppressed class in M.Phil/PhD admissions. Among the students admitted in 2017-18 academic session, SC students comprised just 1.3 percent against 15 percent reservation, ST students only 0.6 percent against 7.5 percent reservation and socially and educationally backward classes (SEdBC's) constituted just 8.2 percent against 27 percent. Similar, neglect of physically disabled is also being reported,” said NSUI.
The NSUI alleged that the JNU administration has implemented the University Grants Commission (UGC) notification of 2016 without considering the deprivation that candidates from SC/ST, SEdBC and disabled background suffer from. The NSUI has demanded that UGC should amend the 2016 notification and provide relaxation for SC/ST, SEdBC and disabled students. It also demanded that JNU should revert to its previous system and ensure that constitutionally mandated SC, ST and SEdBC reservation quotas are fully filled.
On the other hand, a day after JNUSU petitioned the lok Sabha seeking “immediate intervention” in the alleged violation of reservation policy by the university, the JNUSU came with a letter written by more than two dozen Member of Parliament addressed to Union HRD Minister Prakash Javadekar on the alleged violation of reservation policy in JNU.
“The University constituted a committee in 2016 to study the discrimination in the admission process with special reference to viva voce. The Committee submitted its report based on the data (2012-15), which recommended that the discriminatory pattern would get mitigated if the viva mark is reduced from 30 to 15. This shows that University has violated the Act of Parliament . The Central Education Institutions ( reservation in admissions) Act 2006. The university has also violated the constitutional provisions for access to higher education by SC/ST in violation with Article 15 (1), 15 (4) of the constitution and prevention of Atrocities Act 1989,” said the letter by MP's.
It further says , “ therefore, we urge your august office to prevail upon the Vice-Chancellor to restore the reservation policy for admissions to the PhD and MPhil/PhD programmes of JNU and to protect the rights of candidates belonging to SC/ST/OBC/PWD in compliance to central education institutions (reservation in admission) Act 2006.
The JNU official said that admissions were made according to the UGC rules and regulations and there is no curtailment of any sort in providing constitutionally mandated reservation.