The Bombay High Court’s Nagpur bench has ruled against a government policy that exempted students admitted to top 100 QS World University Ranking institutions from income criteria for foreign scholarships. This verdict came after the court reviewed a challenge against Clause D(2), which was argued to unfairly benefit financially stable students over economically disadvantaged ones.
Justices Avinash Gharote and MS Jawalkar issued the decision on Wednesday, emphasizing the need to maintain equity in educational opportunities. The clause had allowed well-off students to access scholarships designed to aid those who are financially restricted, thus subverting the scheme’s objectives.
The legal challenge was initiated by Mayur Sanghrakshit Patil, a 28-year-old student from Nagpur belonging to the Scheduled Caste category. Despite his admission to Duke University, Patil struggled to secure a loan for his education due to his limited financial resources. His family’s annual income of Rs 2,78,000 categorizes them within a lower-income bracket, highlighting the disparity in access to such educational benefits.
The court’s findings pointed out that the exemption led to a disproportionate allocation of scholarships to those least in need, thus denying economically weaker candidates the chance to study abroad.
