‘Non-inclusionary’ caste definition: SC to hear plea against UGC’s equity regulations

NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court connected Wednesday agreed to database for proceeding a plea challenging the precocious notified University Grants Commission (UGC) regulations connected equity successful higher education, which person been criticised for adopting a non-inclusionary explanation of caste-based discrimination.A seat comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi took enactment of submissions made by a lawyer seeking an urgent proceeding successful the matter. “There is simply a anticipation of favoritism against the wide class. My lawsuit is ‘Rahul Dewan and Ors vs Union’,” the lawyer told the court. Responding to this, the Chief Justice said, “We cognize what is happening. Make definite defects are cured. We volition database it.”

The situation pertains to the University Grants Commission (Promotion of Equity successful Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2026, notified connected January 13.

The caller regulations mandate each higher acquisition institutions to represent “equity committees” to analyse complaints of favoritism and beforehand equity connected campuses.Under the regulations, these equity committees indispensable see members from the Other Backward Classes (OBC), Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), persons with disabilities, and women. The 2026 regulations regenerate the UGC (Promotion of Equity successful Higher Educational Institutions) Regulations, 2012, which were mostly advisory successful nature.

The plea assails the regulations connected the crushed that caste-based favoritism has been defined strictly arsenic favoritism against members of the SC, ST and OBC categories. It argues that by limiting the scope successful this manner, the UGC has efficaciously denied organization extortion and grievance redressal to individuals belonging to the wide oregon non-reserved categories who whitethorn besides look harassment oregon bias based connected their caste identity.Meanwhile, protests person been reported from assorted places against the caller regulations, with pupil groups and organisations demanding their contiguous rollback.