US EditionSupreme Court Stays UGC’s Promotion of Equity Regulations, Cites Constitutional Challenge
The Supreme Court paused the UGC's 2026 equity rules after petitions argued the caste discrimination definition excludes general castes, maintaining the 2012 rules instead.
- On January 29, 2026, the Supreme Court of India kept implementation of the University Grants Commission Regulations, 2026 in abeyance and ordered the 2012 regulations to remain in force.
- Petitioners Rahul Dewan, Mritunjay Tiwari and advocate Vineet Jindal argued Regulation 3 of the 2026 Regulations restricts caste-based discrimination to SC, ST and OBC, excluding general castes and creating a `hierarchy of victimhood`.
- A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi asked the Union government to redraft the regulations, observing provisions were `prima facie vague and capable of misuse` and questioning the court's verbal queries on separate definition and ragging exclusion.
- Implementation would have reshaped grievance redressal across higher education institutions, requiring special committees, helplines and monitoring teams for SC, ST and OBC complaints, with sanctions barring non-compliant institutes from UGC schemes, degree programmes and central grants.
- The 2026 regulations were notified on January 13 and prompted protests by upper-caste students who said the framework could discriminate and lacks safeguards against `false complaints`; Indira Jaising, Senior Advocate and Prasanna S., Advocate intervened against the stay.
54 Articles
54 Articles
UGC regulations row 2026: JNU students protest, burnt effigy against Supreme Court's decision
Following the Supreme Court's decision to stay UGC's new regulations, the students of Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), Delhi staged protest outside the Sabarmati Hostel on campus against those opposing UGC regulations. A group of around 50 students participated in the protest. Meanwhile, the students of Delhi University also staged protest on the call of SFI Delhi to condemn the judicial stay. The students raised the demand to instate the UGC…
The Supreme Court has stayed the new UGC rule, which came into effect 17 days ago, until the next hearing and has sought responses from the central government and the UGC. Until then, the old 2012 rule will remain in effect. This entire development has now raised five questions that will determine the future course of this controversy.
What are UGC Rules of 2012 and how they are different from the UGC regulations of 2026 stayed by Supreme Court
The 2012 regulations did not limit the definition of discrimination to select caste groups only. However, the 2026 UGC guidelines explicitly left out General Category students. 'Caste-based discrimination' in the new regulation was defined as discrimination only on the basis of caste or tribe against the members of the scheduled castes, scheduled tribes, and other backward classes.
An unrelated video from Kolkata is being shared as visuals of protests against the UGC’s new regulations
The University Grants Commission (UGC) has notified the Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions Regulations, 2026, which aim to prevent discrimination based on caste, religion, gender, place of birth, disability, or race. The regulations mandate the establishment of Equal Opportunity Centres, Equity Committees, helplines, and grievance redressal mechanisms in colleges and universities. While the UGC says the rules promote equality a…
Introduced by the University Grants Commission to counter the phenomenon on university campuses in Uttar Pradesh were challenged by the students of the "general classes," the categories that do not fall into quota protection systems. Understood for ambiguous language and risk generating new forms of exclusion. The Supreme Court suspended the application, demanding a rewriting and keeping in force the previous protections.
“Capable Of Dividing Society”: Supreme Court Stays UGC’s New Anti-Discrimination Rules
The Supreme Court on Thursday, 29 January 2026, stayed the implementation of the University Grants Commission’s (UGC) newly notified anti-discrimination regulations, expressing concern over their vague provisions and potential for misuse. A Bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi issued notice to the Union government and the University Grants Commission, directing that the regulations remain on hold until further or…
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