The Central university Jamia Milia Islamia has refused to implement the Economically Weaker Section reservation bill, citing the existing minority tag associated with it.
According to a Times of India report, the university in its academic council has decided that it will not be sending the University Grants Commission, its seat arrangement and infrastructure needs, in accordance with the reservation bill.
The Human Resource and Development Ministry, on January 17, had asked central universities to implement the bill and furnish the ministry with relevant information by January 31. HRD ministry has also asked institutions to implement the quota in the 2019-20 sessions and also increase 25% seats there. Jawaharlal Nehru University has already sent the details to HRD on February 1, while DU is yet to comply.
“We found that as we are a minority institution, the EWS quota won’t be applicable to us,” an Academic Council member was quoted by TOI. The member also added that due to minority tag, the university has also not implemented the OBC reservation quota.
The Economically Weaker Section bill became a law on January 9, after it was passed by the Rajya Sabha. The bill amended the articles 15 and 16 of the Constitution of India, making provision for reservation for educational institutes and jobs respectively. This reservation was added to the existing 50% reservation provided for people from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Castes. The bill has already been implemented in several states.
The economically backward has been defined as a family with an annual income below ₹8 lakhs, apart from clauses on landholding. The ₹8 lakh limit is at per with the existing limit for the creamy layer of OBCs.
In the past, there have been demands for ‘minority institutions’ like Aligarh Muslim University and Jamia Milia Islamia, to accommodate Dalits in the university by implementing the reservation meant for them.