08 April 2025 : Indian Express Editorial Analysis

1. An incomplete social justice

(Source – Indian Express, Section – The Ideas Page – Page No. – 13)

 The Legality and Timeliness of Reservation in Private Institutions

• The idea of extending reservation to private universities and colleges is not new; in fact, the Supreme Court has already settled its legality more than a decade ago.
• The concept is backed by constitutional amendments and judicial validation. The problem, however, lies not in the concept or its legality, but in the bureaucratic and political inertia that delays its implementation.
• Despite being an idea whose time has come, the “deep state” — a term used here to signify entrenched systems of power and administration — continues to stall it, highlighting the urgent need for political will.

The Case for Reservation in Private Higher Education

• The argument for extending reservation to private higher educational institutions (PHEIs) is grounded in structural inequality.
• While marginalized communities have begun accessing higher education, the institutions they can afford to enter are often underfunded and of lower quality.
• Meanwhile, the elite, predominantly upper-caste sections dominate the high-quality, private institutions.
• This has created a two-tier system of access and opportunity, where social mobility is undermined by unequal distribution of resources and institutional quality.

The Expansion of Education vs. Elitist Privatization

• India is currently witnessing two parallel trends. On one hand, there’s an unprecedented rise in demand for higher education, driven by increased participation from historically excluded groups like SCs, STs, OBCs, and Muslims.
• On the other hand, there’s a simultaneous decline in public education quality and a boom in the number of private institutions.
• These private institutions, while boasting better infrastructure and faculty, are largely inaccessible to the disadvantaged, both in terms of cost and admission processes that do not accommodate reservation norms.

The Social Composition of Private Institutions

• Data from the All India Survey of Higher Education (2021–22) exposes the stark caste disparities in private universities.
• Upper-caste Hindus, who form around 20% of the population, account for over 60% of the students in private institutions.
• Meanwhile, SCs, STs, and OBCs are significantly underrepresented compared to their population shares.
• This disproportionality shows that private institutions essentially maintain a system of exclusivity — in effect, a form of caste-based gatekeeping.

Affirmative Action: Evidence of Effectiveness

• A comparison with public institutions where reservation policies are mandated reveals significantly better representation of disadvantaged groups.
• Though imperfect, these policies have enabled greater access for SCs, STs, and OBCs in public universities.
• The near absence of such representation in private universities highlights how critical reservation is as a tool of inclusion.
• The contrast demonstrates that quota-based affirmative action does work and is necessary for equitable education.

Policy and the Role of the State

• The National Education Policy, despite its lofty goals, fails to tackle the inequities of privatized education.
• While it talks about inclusion, in practice, the policy environment has supported the commercialisation of education.
• This shift leaves marginalized groups at a disadvantage. The state must not only invest in revitalizing public institutions but also compel private universities to adopt inclusive practices such as implementing reservation and offering scholarships to underprivileged students.

Legal Foundations for Reservation in Private Sector

• From a constitutional and legal standpoint, there are no hurdles to implementing reservation in private educational institutions.
• Article 15(5), introduced by the 93rd Constitutional Amendment, explicitly empowers the state to make special provisions for the socially and educationally backward classes in all educational institutions, excluding minority-run ones.
• Landmark Supreme Court judgments in IMA vs Union of India (2011) and Pramati Trust vs Union of India (2014) have further cemented the legality of such provisions in unaided private institutions.
• Therefore, the only obstacle now is political inertia.

Conclusion

• Bringing reservation to the forefront of political debate would not only fill a policy gap but also serve to unite marginalized communities — Dalits, Adivasis, and OBCs — under a common platform.
• This could rejuvenate the politics of social justice, which has long been fragmented.
• It’s a call for comprehensive reform that combines political vision, constitutional backing, and social urgency — one that seeks to ensure that the democratization of education doesn’t stop at the gates of private universities.

Read more – 07 April 2025 : Indian Express Editorial Analysis