HRD ministry to help reswolve JNU quota row
August 18, 2008: The Times of India
The HRD ministry is likely to intervene to end the stand-off in JNU over OBC reservation in this year’s admissions. Student leaders have been on hunger strike for the past nine days since OBC quota seats in most courses are lying unfilled.
Ministry sources said there was a problem with the interpretation of the new OBC reservation law, a view taken by the JNU students union (JNUSU). JNU is implementing 12% OBC reservation this year.
After the Supreme Court upheld the validity of the reservation law, the HRD ministry had sent out a directive to all central educational institutions (CEI) asking them to fix cut-off marks before the admission tests. It also clarified that each CEI would have the freedom to fix its own cut-off marks. The apex court had said relaxation of 10 marks be given to OBC students.
In JNU, the cut-offs for general students have been at 40 over the years. But ministry sources and JNUSU said the university administration, instead of fixing cut-offs at 40 before the entrance test, had fixed higher marks as cut-offs after going through the results.
For instance, in case the merit list for the unreserved category was filled between 70-90 marks, then as per JNU’s argument, after factoring in the 10 mark relaxation for OBCs, the quota had to be filled by those getting between 60-80 marks. The minimum cut-off for OBCs would be 60 marks and if the quota remained unfilled, the remaining seats would go to the general category.
This resulted in many JNU centres not being able to fill the OBC quota. JNU had 12% OBC students when deprivation points system was in vogue till last year. Under the deprivation points system, OBC students were given five extra marks.
After protest by JNUSU, the university administration took legal opinion which complicated the matter further. According to sources, legal opinion was that JNU should go to the Supreme Court for clarification.
On the other hand, HRD ministry sources said there was no reason to go to the SC as long as 10 marks difference between general and OBC students was maintained. The ministry also pointed to its own directive that was sent to JNU.
