IIM Ahmedabad: Plea in Gujarat HC seeking reservation in PhD programme, says report

NEW DELHI: A PIL has been filed in Gujarat High Court seeking SC, ST, and OBC quota in the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad’s doctoral programme previously known as fellow programme in management, the Times of India reported.

An alumni association has filed the petition and sought court’s directions to the centre and the institute to provide reservation benefits to the marginalized communities in the course, the report said.

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According to the report, last week the Global IIM Alumni Network filed a petition for the sake of students belonging to SC, SC, OBC, and Persons with Disabilities (PWD).

The association claimed that 10 other management institutes including IIM Bangalore, Calcutta, and Kozhikode have decided to offer reservation to such students, as per the report.

The institute started the doctoral programme in the year 1971 without reservation for these communities, the report said.

The petition claimed that IIMA does not follow reservation policy despite being governed and funded by the Ministry of Education which requires serious and immediate actions, the report said.

The plea has also sought a stay on admission process in the PhD programme stating that the current process violates reservation act, the report added.

The PIL further sought directions to the institute to enforce the reservation system, the report said.

The petition filed by the association urged the High Court to declare that IIM Ahmedabad is required to follow and apply the Article 15 of the Constitution which allows reservation in educational institutions, the report said.

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As per the TOI report, the association had filed a similar petition in the court in the year 2018 however, it stayed non-prosecuted for over a year. In 2020, the court disposed of the plea by saying that if any student faces issues due to the non-reservation policy in the PhD programme, they can approach the court.