Fight is for merit, not against communities: Protesting students

Srinagar, Dec 23: The students, who gathered here to protest the current reservation policy in Jammu and Kashmir, said that their fight was not against any specific ethnic group, community, class, or region but for the restoration of merit-based opportunities.

“We are not opposed to reservations for particular ethnic groups, classes, communities, or regions. We are simply advocating for a rationalised reservation policy,” said Mehvish, a student from Government Medical College (GMC), Baramulla. “We demand proportional representation and the implementation of a caste census to ensure justice, equality, and fairness. When a community is granted reservations beyond its socio-economic disadvantages, the fundamental principle of reservations is compromised.”

Mehvish said that reservation quotas should align with the population of the groups they represent.

Fahad Rehman, a student from Government Boys College, Anantnag, echoed similar sentiments.

“We fully support quotas for students from economically deprived or marginalised communities and those from remote areas who lack equal opportunities. However, if the General Category constitutes 70 percent of the population, why shouldn’t their share in professional colleges and jobs reflect that proportion?” he said. “If reserved categories make up 30 percent of the population, they should have representation proportionate to that figure.”

Some students also called for a one-time reservation policy for professional courses.

“If someone secures a seat in a medical or engineering college through reservation, why should they continue to benefit from reservation while seeking postgraduate seats in the same field? They are studying in the same college, taught by the same teachers,” argued a student from GMC Srinagar.

Another MBBS student said that the current policy undermines merit, particularly during entrance tests for postgraduate courses.

“Even the most meritorious students often fail to secure seats due to reserved category candidates with comparatively lower performance getting through,” he said.

The protesting students argued that the existing reservation system affects deserving candidates and risks hollowing out the education system.

“The policy has greatly disrupted the open merit system by allotting only 30 percent reservation to open merit candidates while allocating 60 percent to different categories,” they said.

“We already had 50 percent reservation in place for Scheduled Castes (SCs), Schedule Tribes (STs), Other Backward Category (OBCs), and Residents of Backward Areas (RBAs) but now the share of General Category has been slashed from 50 percent to 40 percent. This 10 percent has been snatched from the General Category and added to STs (Gujjars, Bakarwals, and Paharis) and OBC quota. Even out of 40 percent, 10 percent is earmarked for Horizontal Reservation. So, effectively the unreserved category is left with only 30 percent. These 30 percent of seats are open for everybody, no matter if he or she belongs to General Category or any other Reserved Category,” one of the students said.

“This is about fairness for everyone. The current reservation policy does not account for the unique demographic needs of the region,” he said.

The students expressed hope that the government would scrap the current reservation policy and ensure that the reservation system is equitable.

“The merit-based reservation can only secure the future of education in J&K,” they said.

The students who were carrying placards reading, ‘Don’t kill the merit, justice for General Category’ participated in the protest led by National Conference Member of Parliament, Aga Ruhullah Mehdi.

The protest was also joined by PDP MLA Pulwama, Waheed u Rehman Parra, PDP leader Iltija Mufti and AIP MLA Langate Sheikh Khurshid.

The five student representatives later met Chief Minister Omar Abdullah at his Gupkar residence who assured them of addressing the issue within six months.