JNU failing on social justice, SC/ST enrolment down 25%: Digvijaya Singh in Rajya Sabha

Senior Congress leader and former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Digvijaya Singh on Wednesday (April 1, 2026) alleged in Rajya Sabha that Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) was systematically undermining its social justice mandate, citing a 25% decline in SC/ST enrolment, irregularities in reserved faculty appointments and remarks by the Vice-Chancellor that he said were at odds with the university’s founding principles.

Raising the matter during Zero Hour, Mr. Singh noted the irony that two eminent JNU alumni were seated on the Treasury Benches even as the institution — ranked among the top 10 universities in the National Institutional Ranking Framework — was drifting from its core mandate of national integration, democratic values and social justice.

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He flagged recent media remarks attributed to the JNU Vice-Chancellor, who reportedly described assertions by historically marginalised communities as “permanent victimhood” and suggested such realities were manufactured.

“Such statements raise concerns about the institution’s sensitivity to caste discrimination, equity and constitutional values,” Mr. Singh said.

Citing a JNU Teachers Association report, Mr. Singh said SC and ST student enrolment had declined by around 25% in just three years.

On faculty recruitment, he said that of 326 vacancies for which selection committees were constituted, over 40% resulted in candidates being declared “not found suitable”, with the majority of affected posts being reserved positions.

Mr. Singh also flagged 89 pending faculty promotion cases at JNU, of which 62 had exceeded the stipulated processing period, saying the delays were affecting career progression and PhD supervision capacity.

He urged the government to ensure strict adherence to reservation norms and protect the constitutional commitment to inclusivity across JNU and other central universities.