The National Commission for Scheduled Castes (NCSC) has officially issued notices to Maharashtra National Law University (MNLU), Nagpur regarding allegations of non-compliance with reservation policies in its PhD program for the academic year 2025. This development has surfaced amid controversies surrounding the university’s admission process that seemingly neglected the mandated reservation criteria.
University’s Response and Admission Discrepancies
Prof. Vijender Kumar, the Vice-Chancellor of MNLU Nagpur, expressed his unawareness of the NCSC notices, stating, “I have no idea so far. But if it is so, on Monday, I will ask my office to whom it has come and why it has come and why reply was not given.” He further defended the university’s actions by claiming adherence to the reservation policy, attributing the vacant reserved seats to a lack of qualifying candidates.
However, scrutiny revealed that the provisional selection list dated February 3, 2026, listed 26 candidates eligible for admission, with an overwhelming 20 candidates allocated to the unreserved/general category despite only having 12 designated seats. The Vice-Chancellor clarified that “no reserved post was given to them” and emphasized that “no damage was done to any reserved category candidate.” Further inquiries were deferred to the Convenor of the Doctoral Council, who could not provide additional information due to his recent appointment on April 8, after the issue surfaced in March.
Details of Admission Notification and Reservations
The admission notification for the 2025 PhD program specified an intake of 35 candidates, including 7 seats for Other Backward Classes (OBC) of Maharashtra, 5 for Scheduled Castes (SC), 4 for Socially and Educationally Backward Classes (SEBC), 2 for Scheduled Tribes (ST), and one seat each for various Nomadic Tribes, De-notified Tribes, and Special Backward Classes. However, the final selection process notably lacked representation from SC, ST, SEBC, and several other reserved categories.
Legal Action and Court Proceedings
Dipak Namdev Kharat, a candidate from the NT-C category who had met the entrance examination requirements and appeared for an interview, was among those excluded. Despite raising grievances to the university, he received no resolution, prompting him to seek judicial intervention. The Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court, led by Justices Anil L. Pansare and Nivedita P. Mehta, intervened by issuing a notice to the university on March 10.
Further hearings revealed that MNLU Nagpur was contemplating corrective actions. On April 6, the university submitted an affidavit announcing the withdrawal of an unnotified 50% benchmark for reserved category candidates, consequently reconsidering Kharat’s admission to the 2025 PhD cohort. This admission effectively acknowledged the application of undisclosed eligibility conditions, raising questions about their impact on the exclusion of other reserved category candidates.
While Kharat received relief through court intervention, the broader implications of the February 3 provisional list remain unaddressed, leaving unresolved concerns about the fair implementation of the reservation policy.
