The BJP-led Centre is caught in a storm over the UGC's newly notified caste equity rules, which have added the OBCs to the anti-discrimination mechanism along with the SCs and the STs, without provisions for punitive action over false complaints. The regulations, meant to eradicate religion, caste, gender or disability-based discrimination, and promote equity, have received pushback from "upper caste" groups and even some from within the BJP.
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Amid a raging debate, the Supreme Court on Thursday ordered that the UGC caste equity rules be kept in abeyance. It expressed certain reservations about the rules, and suggested that they must be revisited by a committee comprising eminent jurists. It said that the rules are prima facie "vague" and are "capable of misuse".
More than a dozen local Uttar Pradesh leaders of the BJP have resigned, saying that the rules are one-sided and hurt the "upper-castes", who have traditionally supported the BJP in the state. They have demanded that the new UGC rules be rolled back.
Sporadic protests have also been seen in other cities, including New Delhi, Jaipur, Patna, Indore, Ranchi and Chandigarh.
The "upper-caste" and general category groups say they feel singled out in the new UGC rules. The groups have been traditional backers of the BJP and share a feeling of being alienated.
The new UGC rules follow a Supreme Court case filed in 2019. The court in January 2025 directed the UGC to make its 2012 anti-discrimination framework enforceable. Other than bringing a three-tier set-up to address discrimination on campuses and making institutions liable for punishment for inaction, the new rules expanded the protection for OBCs. The earlier framework provided redressal to only the SCs and the STs.
The new rules also mandate the repre
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