Delhi: GGSIPU will admit students to vacant seats via CUET UG

Delhi Lieutenant Governor (LG) VK Saxena has approved the admission of students on the basis of the Common University Entrance Test Undergraduate (CUET UG) aggregate scores against seats that remained vacant after exhausting the complete merit list of the Common Law Admission Test Undergraduate (CLAT UG) in the five-year integrated law programmes at Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University (GGSIPU). Raj Bhavan officials informed on Tuesday, September 19, that the approval is meant for the 2023-24 academic year.

In a file addressed to Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, the LG expressed his concern that his approval was sought after the commencement of academic session 2023-24, thereby, causing unnecessary harassment to aspiring students of these sought-after professional programmes, officials said. However, sources in the Delhi government said that the LG's comments on the admission to vacant seats were unfortunate, as per a report by PTI.

"It is the Delhi government's initiative that has prevented any vacancy in private colleges of GGSIPU. Many seats were left vacant as only CLAT scores were considered. This is why it was decided that any remaining vacancies would be filled via CUET scores. This is being done for the first time by any university," a source said.

"The Delhi government has allowed CUET score to be considered as the admission criteria, so that all vacancies are filled," the source stressed. "It doesn't suit the LG to try and take credit for efforts being made by an elected government. As a constitutional head, the LG should not be indulging in such practices of purloins of the credits," the person added.

Nonetheless, according to Raj Niwas officials, Saxena, who is also the Chancellor of the GGSIPU has approved the admission of students on the basis of aggregate CUET scores in three subjects (English, Legal Studies and General Test) against the vacant seats. They added that the LG approved the admission procedure keeping in view the larger interests of the students.

They also alleged that the proposal for regulating admission in BA, LLB/BBA LLB Programme in GGSIPU for the 2023-24 academic session was submitted in the month of September, "causing inordinate delay in filling up the vacant seats in these courses". The LG, in his note, advised to ensure the timely commencement of academic activities by ensuring the timely processing of such proposals and to "avoid unnecessary delays" in the future.

Further, the LG directed to process future proposals related to the regulation of admissions procedure through the Admission Regulatory Committee, following the provisions of Delhi Professionals Colleges Or Institutions (Prohibition of Capitation Fee, Regulation of Admission, Fixation of Non-Exploitative Fee and other measures to ensure Equity and Excellence) Act, 2007, the officials said. 

Under Section 4 of this Act, an Admission Regulatory Commission was notified on April 13, 2023 with the approval of Delhi LG, which would regulate the procedure of admission in institutions and suggest the guidelines to the government, to ensure a fair, transparent, merit-based and non-exploitative procedure to be adopted by the government under the said Act.

Meanwhile, GGSIPU has submitted that the university has been admitting students in the relevant courses on the basis of CLAT (UG) till 2022-23, as per PTI.