Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan on Tuesday tried to allay concerns being raised over the new rules of the University Grants Commission (UGC) and assured that the law will not be misused and there will be no discrimination in its implementation.
Speaking to reporters, Pradhan said, “I assure everyone that there will be no discrimination and no one can misuse the law.”
Pradhan’s comments come after the new rules, notified by the UGC on January 13, updated the 2012 rules on the same subject and sparked widespread criticism from general category students, who argued that the framework could lead to discrimination against them.
New rules implemented to prevent caste-based discrimination in colleges and universities require institutions to set up special committees and helplines to resolve complaints, especially from students belonging to Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes.
Meanwhile, students in Lucknow protested in front of Lucknow University raising slogans against the policies of the UGC.
Earlier, Shyam Sundar Tripathi, vice president of BJP Kisan Morcha from Salon constituency of Rae Bareli, had resigned from his post expressing dissatisfaction with the new policies of UGC. Tripathi had announced his resignation in a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The letter written in Hindi said, “I am resigning from my post because of the black law like Reservation Bill brought against upper caste children. This law is extremely dangerous and divisive for the society. I am completely dissatisfied with this bill. There is deep dissatisfaction towards it. I do not support this reservation bill. Supporting such an immoral bill is completely against my self-respect and ideology.”
Suspended Bareilly Municipal Magistrate Alankar Agnihotri alleged constitutional failure in Uttar Pradesh and urged the Central government to intervene.
Stepping up his protest against the Uttar Pradesh administration, Agnihotri claimed growing support from Brahmin organizations in several states and alleged failure of the constitutional machinery in the state.
Speaking to the media during his ongoing protest in Bareilly, Agnihotri said that many organizations from six states and members of the Brahmin community are in touch with him.
“Various organizations and Brahmin communities in our six states are in touch. Many people, including elected representatives, have expressed concern that the UGC rules published in the Government of India Gazette on January 13, 2026, will be extremely harmful for the country,” he said.
