Supreme Court rejects PIL on FYUP of Delhi University

The Supreme Court today rejected a PIL over the UGC-Delhi University row over the four-year undergraduate program (FYUP) and directed the petitioner, a Delhi University Professor who challenged the Commission's direction for scrapping the course to approach the Delhi High Court.

A division bench consisting of JusticesVikramajit Sen and S K Singh asked Prof Aditya Narayan Mishra to go to High Court against the direction issued by the UGC to DU against the controversial FYUP which was introduced from last academic session.

The counsel appearing for the Professor, Ankur Mittal urged the court to hear the matter as it involved urgency, the court reiterated that the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petitioner should approach the Delhi High Court.

Justice Vikramjit has said: "Please go to High Court. The High Court would consider the matter and we would also have benefit of the reasoning of HC on the issue (when the matter comes before SC), In case you approach the Supreme Court at a later stage, then we will have the benefit of the reasoning of the high court."

The petitioner wanted the quashing of the three orders of the University Grants Commission (UGC) dated June 20, 21 and 22. The DU teachers who are in favour of the FYUP also held a hunger strike on Tuesday. They allege political interference in the issue and say that the Human Resource Development Ministry and the University Grants Commission are responsible for the mess.

The UGC's orders asked Delhi University to scrap the controversial four-year under-graduate course started in the last academic year.  A year after the program was introduced, DU and the UGC are at loggerheads over the course and a group of DU teachers today went on a 24-hour long hunger strike to protest against the Commission's order for its roll back.

With no clarity and consensus on the issue, the university also deferred the admission process which was slated to begin on Tuesday, leaving in lurch tens and thousands of students. While speaking to a DU aspirant with 96.9 % marks, he says the situation here is terrible. “Last week, the UGC asked DU to scrap the program and revert, why is DU so adamant. DU is playing with the lives of the students”.