OPINION | UGC 2026 guidelines risk reverse bias in higher education

The UGC 2026 regulations categorise students, faculty, and staff into two groups

A Marxist SDS (Students for a Democratic Society) radical once wrote, “The issue is never the issue. The issue is always the revolution.” In other words, the problem at hand is never the real cause but only an opportunity to advance the Marxist agenda. The new UGC 2026 equity guidelines are a classic example of how, through sustained propaganda, Marxists have influenced the UGC to categorise India’s 4.5 crore students pursuing higher education into two groups – oppressed and oppressor.

This categorisation forms the foundation of the Marxist agenda. Once implemented in educational institutions, it can be extended to other institutions, shaping national perception and influencing future policy decisions. The UGC 2026 guidelines rely on a troubling paradigm: regulations packaged as beneficial to the demographic majority (SC/ST/OBC) can be pushed through without proper legal, historical, or contemporary justification.

Differences Between UGC 2012 and 2026 Regulations

While there are many differences between UGC’s 2012 and 2026 equity regulations, the starkest is the groups covered for protection. UGC 2012 regulations protected all groups against caste discrimination. The 2026 regulations, however, categorise students, faculty, and staff into two groups: SC/ST/OBC as the oppressed and the General Category as unprotected oppressors.

Essentially, the 2026 regulations exclude the General Category (admitted or recruited solely on merit) from the ambit of equity. While all groups deserve protection against caste-based discrimination, including General Category students, the UGC 2026 rules contradict legal, historical, and contemporary realities. Attempts to justify this as a Supreme Court directive are false; no order since 20 September 2019 has suggested excluding any group from the ambit of equity.

Competence and Misclassification

The UGC is merely a regulatory body for certain aspects of higher education and has no competence to designate some groups as “Protected” while excluding others. Excluding the General Category is as arbitrary as ruling that only people from the Northeast or South would be protected from place-of-birth discrimination.

Moreover, OBC classification is neither purely caste-based nor indicative of oppression. Article 15(4) and 16(4) of the Indian Constitution provide reservations for “Socially and Educationally Backward Classes,” not castes. The Supreme Court, in Indra Sawhney, clarified that caste is only a starting point; other occupational and social indicators determine backwardness.

OBC lists include many non-caste groups from Muslim and Christian communities and are periodically reviewed. Powerful caste groups, such as Kurmis, Patels, Mudaliars, Nadars, and Vanniyars, have also secured inclusion as OBCs, despite lacking any historical oppression. Equating OBCs with SC/STs ignores contemporary social and economic realities.

Contradictions and Reverse Bias

The OBC list varies across states and central lists, creating absurd scenarios. For example, Jats in Uttar Pradesh may be OBC, while Jats in Haryana are General Category. Under UGC 2026 guidelines, a Jat from UP could file a caste atrocity complaint against a Jat from Haryana.

The guidelines also ignore evidence on campus discrimination. Surveys show that 81% of accused in cases under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act belong to OBC communities, 5% to minorities, and only 14% to the General Category. Numerous incidents illustrate anti-General Category sentiment, particularly on campuses:

* April 2022: Anti-Brahmin slogans at Banaras Hindu University.

* December 2022: Anti-Brahmin slogans at Jawaharlal Nehru University.

* May 2023: Former RJD MLA remarked that Brahmins should be driven out of India.

* March 2024: Students at Ashoka University shouting anti-Brahmin slogans.

* March 2025: Slogans at JNU targeting upper castes.

* January 2026: Video of RJD spokesperson suggesting framing upper castes in false cases.

Additionally, data from the Lok Sabha (27 March 2023) revealed that 50% of all student suicides in premier institutions like IITs, NITs, and IIMs involved General Category students. Yet, the UGC defines discrimination solely when the victim belongs to SC/ST/OBC categories.

Conclusion

The UGC 2026 regulations risk institutionalising reverse bias, fostering division, and turning higher education institutions into battlegrounds for manufactured victimhood. By excluding the General Category from protection and misrepresenting OBCs as oppressed, the regulations ignore contemporary realities and legal principles. 

(TV Mohandas Pai, Chairman - Aarin Capital and Venkatramanan Krishnamurthy, Management Consultant.)

Views are personal, and do not represent the stand of this publication.