THE ASIAN INDEPENDENT UK
We, the undersigned civil society organizations, alumni associations of premier Indian institutions, academic networks, and members of the Indian diaspora across the United States and other countries, issue this joint statement to express our considered concern regarding the unfinished implementation of Article 15(5) of the Constitution of India and the future of equity safeguards in higher education governance.
India’s Constitution envisions substantive equality. It does not merely prohibit discrimination; it empowers the State to actively correct structural disadvantage. Article 15(5), inserted through the 93rd Constitutional Amendment Act, 2005, explicitly authorizes the State to make special provisions for the advancement of Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and socially and educationally backward classes in educational institutions, including private unaided institutions, except minority institutions protected under Article 30.
This constitutional amendment was enacted at a time when India’s higher education landscape was rapidly expanding through privatization. Parliament clearly recognized that if private education grew without social obligations, the architecture of constitutional justice would shrink. Article 15(5) was meant to prevent that outcome.
Nearly two decades later, comprehensive enabling legislation implementing Article 15(5) in private higher educational institutions has not been enacted.
During this same period, the structure of Indian higher education has transformed dramatically. More than sixty-five percent of colleges and hundreds of universities are privately managed. Many elite private institutions now play a decisive role in shaping corporate leadership, public policy networks, global academic partnerships, and intellectual influence. Yet reservation policies remain largely confined to public institutions.
This structural divergence risks creating a two-tier system: public institutions bearing the primary responsibility of social inclusion, while private institutions increasingly shape elite pathways without equivalent constitutional obligations.
The 370th Report of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education (August 2025), chaired by Shri Digvijaya Singh, documented under-representation of SC/ST/OBC students in several leading private universities and highlighted the absence of binding statutory implementation of Article 15(5). The Committee recommended legislative action.
We believe this recommendation deserves serious and immediate consideration.
We also note that in January 2026, the University Grants Commission issued the UGC (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations, 2026, strengthening anti-discrimination safeguards through Equity Cells, grievance redressal mechanisms, and institutional accountability requirements. These are important reforms aimed at ensuring dignity and safety within campuses.
However, these Regulations operate within existing admission frameworks and derive authority from the UGC Act, 1956. With the introduction of the Viksit Bharat Shiksha Adhishthan (VBSA) Bill proposing repeal of the UGC Act, there is a risk that these safeguards may lapse unless explicitly incorporated into the new statutory framework.
At a time when India is seeking to position itself as a global knowledge leader, equity cannot be treated as a peripheral administrative issue. The legitimacy of institutions—both nationally and internationally—depends on their social inclusiveness.
We emphasize the following principles:
First, privatization cannot become a shield against constitutional responsibility. Second, representation and institutional accountability must advance together. Third, equity safeguards must have statutory durability, not remain vulnerable to regulatory transitions.
We therefore respectfully call upon the Government of India and Parliament to:
1. Enact comprehensive enabling legislation under Article 15(5) to operationalize reservation in private higher educational institutions, consistent with constitutional provisions and excluding minority institutions as required by Article 30.
2. Incorporate the substantive provisions of the UGC Equity Regulations, 2026 directly into the proposed VBSA legislation, or otherwise ensure statutory continuity of anti-discrimination safeguards during and after the regulatory transition.
India’s global standing as a democracy committed to justice depends not only on economic growth but on equitable access to opportunity. Higher education is a primary site where future leadership is formed. Its social composition matters.
The Constitution has already provided the framework. What remains is implementation.
We offer this statement in a spirit of constructive engagement and with the hope that constitutional commitments will be translated into durable policy action.
Media
https://sansad.in/getFile/rsnew/Committee_site/Committee_File/ReportFile/16/198/370_2025_8_12.pdf?source=rajyasabhahttps://prsindia.org/files/bills_acts/bills_parliament/2025/Viksit_Bharat_Shiksha_Adhishthan_Bill,_2025.pdfhttps://thewire.in/caste/misreading-the-data-an-iim-udaipur-study-and-the-myth-of-caste-dominancehttps://news.careers360.com/ugc-equity-regulations-2026-rohith-vemula-student-suicides-expose-upper-caste-privilege-sc-st-obc-merit-br-amdedkar-mental-healthhttps://en.themooknayak.com/discussion-interview/beyond-restoration-why-the-ugc-equity-struggle-must-demand-constitutional-transformationhttps://www.ugc.gov.in/pdfnews/1881254_UGC-Promotion-of-Equity-in-HEIs-Regulations-2026.pdf
Signatories:
IIT Bombay SC/ST Alumni Association
Indian Maitri Sangha (International)
Ambedkar Association of North America-AANA
Ambedkar International Mission-AIM Houston, USA
Ambedkar International Mission-AIM Brunei
Ambedkar International Mission-AIM Bahrain
Boston Study Group- Boston, USA
Ambedkar International mission AIM India
Ambedkar King Study Circle, USA
Ambedkariets dhamma Association- ADA Charlotte North Carolina, USA
Ambedkarite International Mission Society (AIMS), Canada
People education Welfare society
Begumpura Cultural Society of New York
International Bahujan Organization (IBO)
Shri Guru Ravidas Sabha of New York, USA
Dr Ambedkar Buddhist Organisation Birmingham UK
Global BAMCEF Diaspora
Samata Sainik Dal
BHARAT HEAVY ELECTRICALS LIMITED
Professor Dr Gali Vinod Kumar, Republican party of India(Bheem Rao Ambedkar), Telangana
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