Kerala High Court tells UGC to alter JRF norms

Kochi: The Kerala High Court has held as unconstitutional a criterion fixed by the UGC for reservation of Backward Classes in awarding Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) and National Eligibility Test (NET) qualification. The HC asked the Commission to come up with a new set of norms.

As per the UGC norms, lower minimum marks are prescribed for candidates belonging to reserved categories to pass the NET. Among those who are thus qualified, there is a further grouping. The UGC norm declares the top 15 per cent candidates in all the categories as NET qualified for each subject. The petitioner G. Sukumaran Nair, general secretary, Nair Service Society, contended that the norm resulted in insufficient number of candidates from the general category for the open vacancies.

The court held that the UGC is free to evolve a criterion which does not affect the efficacy of merit candidates from the general category for selection to all open vacancies in future. The notification stipulates that the minimum marks to be obtained in the NET for the award of Junior Research Fellowship and eligibility for appointment as assistant professor are, 40 per cent for Papers I and II and 50 per cent for Paper III for general candidates.

It was 35 per cent for Papers I and II and 40 per cent for Paper III for OBC (Other Backward Communities), PWD (Persons With Disability), SC (Scheduled Caste) and ST (Scheduled Tribe) candidates. The UGC contended that there was no illegality in prescribing lower minimum marks for pass in the NET for reserved categories and since only the candidates who secure the minimum marks in the reserved categories are entitled to be qualified, there is no illegality in qualifying the top 15 per cent among them.