Four minority institutions in Delhi exempted from OBC quota

The Delhi High Court Friday exempted four minority colleges of Delhi University from reserving 27 percent seats for students from Other Backward Classes (OBCs) for the 2014-15 academic year.

Justice Manmohan passed the order while hearing a plea filed by Mata Sundari College seeking exemption from the OBC quota as it was minority-run institution.

The order will benefit four DU colleges run by Delhi Sikh Gurdwara Management Committee (DSGMC), constituted under the Delhi Sikh Gurdwaras Act. Apart from Mata Sundari College, these are Guru Tegh Bahadur Khalsa College, Guru Gobind Singh College, and Guru Nanak Dev Khalsa College -- all declared minority institutes.

Passing the order, the court also said that these colleges shall provide reservation in admission for Scheduled Castes/Scheduled Tribes as per the Delhi University's norms, but they will not be obliged to give reservation to OBCs for this academic session.

Mata Sundari College, during the hearing, contended that the reservation policy was not applicable to these institutions in view of a Supreme Court verdict on OBC reservations.

The apex court had held that minority educational institutions (MEI), whether they were aided by the government or unaided, were exempted from reserving seats for OBCs, the college added.

However, DU maintained that reservation rule of DU for OBC should be followed by these colleges also.