The Supreme Court of India stayed the University Grants Commission’s (Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions) Regulations of 2026 on Thursday, January 29.
A bench comprising CJI Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi was hearing three writ petitions which challenge the constitutionality of the 2026 Regulations. These have been filed by Mritunjay Tiwari, advocate Vineet Jindal, and Rahul Dewan.
Observing that the provisions are prima facie “vague” and “capable of misuse”, the apex court asked the Union government to redraft the regulations, LiveLaw reported. CJI Surya Kant said that the Regulations have the effect of "dividing the society." "There are 4-5 questions...otherwise this will have very sweeping consequences...dividing society..will lead to very dangerous impact!," the CJI was quoted as saying by Livelaw.
The 2026 regulations are to be kept in abeyance until after the redrafting the court added.
The University Grants Commission’s equity regulations were notified on January 13. The new regulations were aimed at tackling caste-based discrimination in higher education institutions (HEI) in the country. The 2026 regulations were to supersede a previous notification issued in 2012.
The UGC drafted the revised regulations following a public interest litigation filed by the mother of Rohit Vemula and Payal Tadvi, two Dalit students who died by suicide following caste-based discrimination in their educational institutions.
The petition, filed in 2019, had pointed out that caste-based discrimination against members of the SC/ST community, as well as institutional apathy, is rampant in India’s educational institutions. It also alleged that there was “flagrant non-compliance with the existing norms and regulations in place”. The petitioners also insisted that existing norms, as per the 2012 regulations, were inadequate as they did not address the occurrence of caste-based discrimination on campus against both teachers and students.
The petition had demanded the setting up of Equal Opportunity Cells in campuses and asked that these cells include members from the SC/ST communities and independent representatives.
Following Supreme Court directions in this petition, the UGC drafted the 2026 regulations. The stated aims of the 2026 notification were to ensure that every HEI eradicates discrimination and promotes equity on campuses. It required institutions to take protective measures to eliminate discrimination based on caste, creed, religion, language, ethnicity, gender, or disability. The notification also tasked the heads of HEIs with ensuring that the regulations are observed.
However, the notification issued earlier this month had given rise to controversy, with opposing voices questioning the new regulations both in court and outside.