The Common University Entrance Test (CUET) 2022 score must be given 100 percent weight when granting admission to non-minority students in its undergraduate programs, according to a Delhi High Court order. St. Stephen’s College of Delhi University petitioned the Supreme Court for a stay on the order, but it was denied.
Justices Ajay Rastogi and C. T. Ravikumar were on the panel that said, “We find one reason to delay the verdict.” However, it stated that any subsequent admission-related actions “will be subject to the eventual conclusion of the petition” and set the hearing for the middle of March.
The top court had ruled that the college could not interview applicants who did not fall into a minority group and that admission should be based only on CUET results. The high court had also ruled that non-minorities cannot be granted the same rights as minority institutions under the Constitution. For the admission of Christian students, it had been stated that the institution has the ability to conduct interviews in addition to reviewing CUET results, but it is not permitted to require non-minority applicants to participate in interviews as well. For its part, the college had stated that for “all categories of candidates,” it will give the CUET score of 85% weight and physical interviews 15%.
However, the HC bench had ruled that the DU “cannot insist upon a single merit list for admission of candidates belonging to the Christian community regardless of denomination, etc.” while asking St Stephen’s to withdraw its prospectus giving 15% weightage to interviews for admission to these unreserved seats. The high court’s decision was based on petitions that were filed by a law student and the institution challenging the legitimacy of the process for admitting students to UG courses versus open, non-minority seats.
