Promulgate ordinance on Reservation Roster for teaching positions in HEIs: Leaders to govt

Leaders from different political parties Friday urged the Centre to promulgate an ordinance or bring in a legislation on Reservation Roster for teaching positions in higher education institutions (HEIs).

In July, the appointment of academic staff in HEIs was put on hold by the University Grants Commission (UGC) till the Supreme Court issued its verdict on the special leave petition filed by the HRD Ministry against a court order curtailing reservation for SC/ST and OBCs.

The UGC had announced in March that an individual department should be considered as the base unit to calculate the number of teaching posts to be reserved for Scheduled Caste (SC) and Scheduled Tribe (ST) candidates following an order by the Allahabad High Court in April last year.

Higher education has not seen such crisis in India as before, Sitaram Yechury, leader of CPI(M), said at a press conference organised by the Delhi University Teachers' Association (DUTA).

"Assault on higher education is connected to the ideological project that is being pursued by this government under the direction of the RSS.

"The whole effort is to convert the study of Indian history into the study of Hindu mythology. If you want to assert Hindu mythology as the only history of India then the inherent would be caste biased," Yechury added.

When the roster issue had come up, we all protested in Parliament, he said, adding five of the central universities where the advertisements were issued, there were not even a single position for SC, ST and OBCs.

"We raised the issue and the minister concerned assured that there will be an ordinance to overcome the Supreme Court direction. They have issued a notification suspending any recruitment till the issue is resolved. Now they have withdrawn the suspension and if recruitments begin now, a large number of deserving SC/ST will not fight," Yechury said.

Rajya Sabha MP Manoj Jha said he has asked for a short duration discussion in Parliament on the roster issue.

"The education policies implemented under the Modi government are geared towards pushing the marginalised section outside the ambit of higher education.

"Commercialisation of public funded higher education is yet another way to deny education and jobs to Dalit-Bahujan samaj. We have asked for a short duration discussion on the roster," he said.

Congress leader Rajeev Gowda accused the central government of destroying the democratic and constitutional values in the country and dividing the country for "petty political gains".

"We urge the government to bring in an ordinance (roster issue) immediately after the session finishes or bring a bill within the next eight days," he said.

The BJP government has failed the people of India on the issue of reservation in teaching positions, Binoy Viswam, member of Rajya Sabha, said.

Udit Raj, Lok Sabha MP, expressed support to the DUTA and raised the issue of discontinuation of the Rajiv Gandhi fellowship to SC/ST by the government and demanded reservation in judiciary.

There should be a nationwide movement on this issue as the government's inaction on the matter was intentional, alleged Sharad Yadav of Loktantrik Janata Dal.