IIM-A tells Gujarat HC that it will implement reservation in PhD programme

Ahmedabad:The Indian Institute of Management – Ahmedabad (IIM-A) on Thursday conveyed to the Gujarat High Court that it is willing to implement reservations for SC, ST, and OBC candidates in its PhD program.

The premier management institute had earlier said that implementing reservations in the PhD/FPM (Fellow Programme in Management) course may potentially lead to inequities for other deserving and meritorious students.

The institute has now changed that position.

“There is an affidavit filed by the institution (IIM-A) in which they have said that they have come to a conclusion that they want to implement reservation in their PhD programme in due course,” Bhadrish Raju, the lawyer representing IIM-A told the court today.

A division bench, presided over by Chief Justice Sunita Agarwal and Justice Aniruddha P. Mayee, was hearing a PIL initiated in 2021 by the alumni association of IIM – Global IIM Alumni Network. The PIL contended that despite being governed and funded by the Union education ministry, the country’s top business school was allegedly violating the Central Educational Institutions (Reservation in Admission) Act, 2006, or the CERA Act, during the admission process for its PhD program.

When the court sought additional information regarding the institute’s recent decision, advocate Raju requested a week’s time to consult with the client and provide a comprehensive response to the court. The court duly granted this extension and has fixed October 19 as the next date for hearing.

The PIL states that 15 out of 20 IIMs across the country provide reservation for the same programme as per the CERA Act. All the IIMs are governed by the IIM Act, 2017, which makes IIM-A and other IIMs central institutions under the CERA Act.

The petitioner claimed that the IIM-A had been carrying out an admission process in gross violation of the 2006 Act and Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016. The CERA Act provides for the reservation of students belonging to the SC, ST, OBC to the extent of 15 per cent, 7.5 per cent and 27 per cent, respectively, in Central educational institutions, it stated. Despite being a Central institution under the Act, IIM-A has not provided reservation for admission to its PhD programme, the plea alleged.

The institute should be directed to follow and implement Article 15 (5) of the Constitution by providing reservation to the SC, ST and OBC candidates as well as persons with disabilities with requisite quota, as per the PIL. The PhD programme was earlier known as FPM.

IIM-A in its earlier affidavit had contended that implementing reservations in the PhD/FPM course may have unintended consequences and potentially lead to inequities for other deserving and meritorious students. It argued that, for a specialised high-level doctoral program of this nature, “it is in the broader interest not to introduce reservation policies.”

IIM-A in its earlier submissions to the Gujarat high court had also stated that neither the Constitution of India nor any other legislation contemplates the implementation of reservations for courses or programs at advanced levels of specialisation. Even candidates from reserved categories, as they progress to the stage of applying for programs like PhD/FPG, have typically already benefited from reservation policies during their undergraduate and postgraduate (specialisation) level studies, it said.