The Supreme Court has come to the timely rescue of the government by staying the UGC Equity Regulations 2026. Before the things could get out of the hands, more within the core supporters of the ruling BJP, the apex court may have given the ruling establishment breathing space by putting the matter onto the back burner.

Has such ‘affirmative’ measures in the higher education institutes like the UGC Equity Regulations 2026 always yielded desired results? If we were to take a case study of the Delhi University, the introduction of reservation for the OBCs has created a considerable loss to the academic environment. If one were to limit the study to the conduct of DU Students Union (DUSU) elections alone, the contests for the main posts have come to be limited between two prominent OBC communities. What should ideally be a democratic exercise representing the collective student body has gradually turned into a contest dominated by caste consolidation.

Elections have ceased to be driven by ideological debate, policy vision, or student welfare. They have become vulgar ostentation of money power and community muscle. Campaigns are marked by extravagant spending, aggressive mobilisation, and patronage networks that resemble mainstream electoral politics rather than campus democracy. In such an atmosphere, the election machinery often appears reduced to the role of helpless minions.

The record of judicial interventions provides evidence of the systemic irregularities in the campus polls. The Delhi High Court has repeatedly been compelled to intervene in DUSU polls to ensure that the process remains within lawful and democratic boundaries. From violations of expenditure limits to breaches of the Lyngdoh Committee recommendations, the elections have frequently required external correction.

When courts are repeatedly forced to step in, it is a sign that institutional processes have become dysfunctional. Such dysfunction cannot be separated from the manner in which caste-based mobilisation has transformed student politics into a competitive arena of community dominance.

Perhaps the most under-discussed consequence of this evolving environment is the gradual withdrawal of general category students from participation. It would be worth examining how many students admitted under the general/ non-reserved category, often with a high degree of academic merit, are able to meaningfully participate in these polls, let alone win them.

Low voting percentages in DUSU polls illustrate not merely apathy but alienation. Students who feel that the electoral space is already captured by entrenched community blocs and money-driven politics see little incentive in participating. This disengagement has started a process of reverse ostracisation, where general category students increasingly feel excluded from the representative structures of the university.

It is in this context that the now-stayed UGC Equity Regulations 2026 must be assessed. While the notification may have been framed as an extension of inclusion, its potential impact could have strengthened identity-driven fragmentation within higher education institutions.

Higher education is not simply an offerings space; it is also a formative one, meant to cultivate shared intellectual culture and national integration. The Delhi University experience suggests that the design and implementation of such measures require serious recalibration. The state must ensure that inclusion does not become a tool for entrenched political capture, and that universities do not turn into arenas of identity contestation.

The Supreme Court’s stay offers an opportunity not merely for the government to regroup politically, but for the nation to reflect seriously on whether existing frameworks are producing empowerment or simply new hierarchies.

The Delhi University case demonstrates that affirmative measures, when poorly monitored or politically weaponised, can distort academic environments and alienate significant sections of students. True equity must strengthen institutions, not fragment them. If higher education is to remain a space of excellence and integration, policies must be guided not only by intention but by careful evaluation of outcomes.

The story is reported by Sidharth Mishra of The New Indian Express