He said students who include subjects like Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Odia, Kannada or Marathi in their ‘best of four’ lose marks during admissions.
Image: PTI
The flamboyant chief minister of Kerala, Pinarayi Vijayan, has written to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on July 18 against the Delhi University’s alleged discriminationagainst students who include certain subjects in their “best of four” while seeking admission. In his letter, Vijayan says, “It has been reported that several languages included in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution, including Malayalam, are not a part of the Modern Indian Languages list considered by the university. It means they cannot be included in calculation of the “best of four” marks, which determines the aggregate score for admission into DU.” Aspiring students who can include languages like Tamil, Telugu, Odia, Kannada, Marathi and Malayalam in their “best of four” aggregate are subjected to a 2.5%-deduction in their total marks, because these languages are not “academic subjects” listed by the University, he said.
Thus, says Vijayan, the DU admission procedures was violative of the Constitution. “It is a matter of great concern that a Central University is penalising their prospective students on the basis of their language, when it ought to lead by example in ensuring national integration,” the letter further said.He urged the prime minister to take necessary steps to ensure that all languages in the 8th Schedule of the Constitution are included in the university’s admission process.Dean of Colleges Devesh Sinha said he is not aware of such a letter, according to The Indian Express. “If it comes to us, we will look into it,” he was quoted as saying.