NEW DELHI: A second plea challenging the recent UGC notification was filed in the Supreme Court, alleging that it uses a non-inclusive definition of caste-based discrimination and denies institutional protection to certain categories.
The plea, filed by lawyer Vineet Jindal, seeks a writ restraining the Union of India and University Grants Commission(UGC) from enforcing Regulation 3(c) in its current form, which denies grievance redressal and institutional protection to individuals outside SC, ST, and OBC categories. It also calls for a direction to ensure that Equal Opportunity Centres, Equity Helplines, inquiry mechanisms, and Ombudsperson proceedings under the 2026 Regulations are made accessible in a caste-neutral and non-discriminatory manner until the regulation is amended.
On January 13, the UGC notified the Regulations, superseding its (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2012, while the stated objective of the Regulations is to foster equity, inclusion, and a discrimination-free academic environment across Higher Education Institutions in India.
Jindal argued that denying access to grievance mechanisms based on caste identity amounts to impermissible State discrimination and violates Articles 14, 15(1), and 21 of the Constitution.
A similar petition was also filed on January 24, seeking a direction from the SC to declare the Regulation 3(c) of the UGC (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) 2026, notified on January 13, as unconstitutional, discriminatory, arbitrary and violative of Articles 14, 15(1), 19(1)(a), and 21 of the Constitution.
The plea filed by Mrityunjay Tiwari, in the top court, through lawyer Neeraj Singh and AOR (Advocate-on-Record) Satyam Pandey, sought issuance of order directing the Respondents, UOI and UGC, to ensure that equal opportunity Centres, equity helplines, inquiry mechanisms, and ombudsperson proceedings under the 2026 Regulations are made available in a non-discriminatory and caste-neutral manner, pending appropriate amendment or reconsideration of Regulation 3(c).
The plea of Tiwari further sought order directing the Respondents to read down and suitably amend Regulation 3(c) of the UGC (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2026, so as to define "caste-based discrimination" in a caste-neutral, inclusive, and constitutionally compliant manner, extending protection and grievance redressal mechanisms to all persons subjected to discrimination on the basis of caste, irrespective of caste identity;
The plea also sought order restraining the Respondents from enforcing or acting upon Regulation 3(c) of the UGC (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2026, in its present exclusionary form, insofar as it denies grievance redressal and institutional protection to persons belonging to non-SC/ST/OBC categories.
The plea of Tiwari further sought to declare that denial of access to grievance redressal mechanisms on the basis of caste identity amounts to impermissible State discrimination and is violative of the fundamental rights guaranteed under Articles 14, 15(1), and 21 of the Constitution of India.