Hyderabad: Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) MLC Dr. Dasoju Shravan launched a sharp critique against both the State and Central governments, accusing them of perpetuating systemic injustice against Backward Class (BC) students in legal education. 

In a press meet held at Telangana Bhavan, Dr. Dasoju presented a detailed breakdown of NALSAR's admission data, framing it as a prime example of systemic injustice. "It is a shame that reservations are not being implemented in NALSAR. The irony is that a university established to uphold the law is itself flouting constitutional mandates."

“The denial and dilution of OBC reservations in admissions to National Law Universities (NLUs). including NALSAR University of Law, Hyderabad, is a direct assault on the constitutional promise of social justice, equality of opportunity, and inclusive development” added Shravan.

Citing the official prospectus for NALSAR's 2024-25 academic year, he highlighted a significant shortfall. For the B.A., LL.B. (Hons.) programme, only 17 seats (18%) of the 99 All India Quota (AIQ) seats are reserved for OBCs, far below the mandated 27%. A similar deficit exists for the LL.M. programme, where only 20% of AIQ seats are reserved for OBCs against the required 27%. 

He further emphasized that the State Quota (25% of seats) also fails to provide the legally required 10% reservation for Scheduled Tribes, ‘compounding the injustice’.

BRS leader accuses centre and state of injustice

This issue, however, is not confined to NALSAR. Dr. Dasoju painted a bleak picture of India's National Law Universities (NLUs). He called it a "chaotic, discriminatory framework." He listed several institutions with zero OBC reservation in their AIQ, including RMLNLU Lucknow, CNLU Patna, and NUALS Kochi. Others like NLU Delhi (22%) and NLIU Bhopal (10%) were also found to be non-compliant.

The leaders pointed to a specific order from the National Commission for Backward Classes (NCBC) dated January 20, 2020 (File No. NCBC/06/10/113/2019-CP/AT), which directed the implementation of 27% OBC reservation in all law universities. Dr. Dasoju, who was a petitioner in the matter, lamented that no action has been taken by the UGC or the government to ensure compliance since then.

Dr. Dasoju stated that despite the changing political landscape, the plight of BC students remains unchanged. "Whether there is a Congress government or a BJP government at the centre, BC students are losing money," he said, expressing deep frustration over the unfulfilled constitutional promise of social justice.

Calling it a "blatant and glaring injustice," the BRS MLC has written a letter to the Union Education Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, appealing for urgent intervention. Shravan points out some consequences of this ‘gross injustice.’ OBC students, who make up nearly 52% of India’s population, are denied their fair share in top legal institutions. Law universities train judges, advocates, and policymakers. Denying OBCs access strengthens elitism in the legal system and reduces diversity in the judiciary. If top institutions meant to uphold the Constitution ignore its basic principles, it harms our Republic. This causes structural inequality. It makes sure that future judges and leaders in legal academia come mostly from privileged backgrounds.

Demands OBC reservation in law universities

The demands include immediately directing NALSAR to implement correct reservations, issuing uniform guidelines for all NLUs through the CLAT Consortium, and amending laws to explicitly bring NLUs under the OBC reservation framework.

The event was attended by BRSV President Gellu Srinivas Yadav, former BC Commission member Shubhprad Patel, former Corporation Chairmen, and leaders of the National OBC Students' Association.