The Supreme Court has declined to interfere with the Delhi High Court’s decision to allow St. Stephen’s College to conduct interviews for minority quota admissions. The high court’s ruling, issued on July 21, was contested by the Delhi University and the University Grants Commission (UGC) in separate petitions before the Supreme Court. However, the bench of justices AS Bopanna and PS Narasimha dismissed both petitions, emphasizing that the high court’s order is interim and admission is subject to the final outcome of the writ petition. This marks the second consecutive year that the college has been permitted to allocate 15% weightage to interviews for filling 50% Christian quota seats.
The college had challenged a December 30 notification from the Delhi University, directing admissions under the minority quota to rely solely on the common university entrance test (CUET) scores. While Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, representing Delhi University, argued that this year’s process should align with last year’s change, allowing meritorious students selected based on CUET scores, the Supreme Court maintained that it will not intervene at this stage to avoid confusion among students.
The bench highlighted that the University had endorsed admissions and issued fee payment instructions to students. It was noted that any dispute regarding the 15% interview weightage should be presented before the high court. The Supreme Court urged continuity in admissions according to the interim order.
Sources By Agencies
