 Summary of this article
- The 2026 UGC rules were introduced to curb systemic caste discrimination in universities, following rising complaints, student suicides, and Supreme Court intervention.
- The backlash, centred on claims of ‘misuse’ and reverse discrimination, mirrors past resistance to anti-caste laws, recasting safeguards as persecution.
- The controversy reveals deep institutional bias, where protections for marginalised communities face scrutiny while structural caste power remains unquestioned.
The uproar over the University Grants Commission (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2026, is a revealing moment in India’s long and uneasy engagement with caste. Notified on January 13, 2026, the regulations—meant to curb caste discrimination in universities—were immediately challenged in the Supreme Court (and the court quickly stayed them), denounced on social media, and met with violent protests across campuses. The reaction followed a familiar script: any attempt to protect the marginalised was recast as an attack on the privileged. While open denial of caste discrimination has become untenable, opposition has shifted to the safer claim of ‘misuse’. Protective measures for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes are said to threaten merit and enable reverse victimisation. The irony is stark. These arguments come from social groups that continue to dominate university administrations, faculty ranks, regulatory bodies, and the higher bureaucracy, yet present themselves as besieged minorities. |
