Call for Quota: Reservations in Private Indian HEIs Urged

The Congress party in India demands new legislation for reservations in private higher educational institutions, advocating for 15% reservations for Scheduled Castes, 7.5% for Scheduled Tribes, and 27% for Other Backward Classes. This follows a Parliamentary Committee's recommendation in support of this legislative change.

The Indian National Congress urged the government on Wednesday to introduce legislation in Parliament to ensure reservations for disadvantaged communities in private higher educational institutions. The appeal follows a Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education report recommending such quotas.

Congress general secretary Jairam Ramesh emphasized that the need for reservations for Scheduled Castes (SC), Scheduled Tribes (ST), and Other Backward Classes (OBC) can no longer be ignored. He stated that the Parliamentary Committee, headed by Digvijaya Singh, has officially advocated for this cause in its recent report.

The report refers to Article 15(5) of the Indian Constitution, which allows the government to mandate reservations in private institutions. Despite Supreme Court backing, no enforceable law exists, leading Congress to call for urgent legislative action to improve representation of SC, ST, and OBC students in private institutions.

(With inputs from agencies.)