In a special appeal defective filed before the Allahabad High Court against an order dated 16-09-2026 by a Single Judge in a writ petition filed by a Ph.D. research scholar and a law student at the Dr. Rajendra Prasad National Law University against the Head of Department of Law and Warden of Boys’ Hostel (appellant)(respondent 6) who was allegedly an instrument of caste-based humiliation and retaliation, a Division Bench of Justice Siddhartha Varma and Justice Kunal Ravi Singh stayed the writ proceedings till the next date of listing of the special appeal.
In the complaint submitted by one of the writ petitioners, it was mentioned that the stricter evaluation of the answer-sheets was due to the petitioner’s caste as there had been multiple occasions when the appellant, belonging to an upper caste community, had publicly made intentional insulting remarks regarding caste and reservation.
A writ petition was filed by respondents 6 and 7 seeking a direction for complaints dated 20-08-2026, 25-08-2026, 01-09-2026, and 04-09-2026 to be decided through independent and properly constituted Equity Committee and for commanding an enquiry to remove respondent 6 therein of all direct administrative, evaluative, research-related and hostel authority over the petitioners therein, including any role as Head/Coordinator, Research Cell functionary as Boys’ Hostel Warden or teaching assignments insofar as it affects them to have petitioner 1’s synopsis and petitioner 2’s disputed evaluation independently reviewed by unbiased academic experts unrelated to respondent 6, without prescribing any predetermined academic outcome.
The appellant submitted that when the case was taken up, he had not made any concession for fresh enquiry committee to be formed as was done in the impugned order dated 16-09-2026. It was contended that when an Equal Opportunity Cell was there and the petitioners in the writ petition themselves asked for a prayer that the said Cell may inquire into the matter after excluding the appellant, then complete outsiders should not have been made to enquire into the matter.
The Court stated that when a prayer was made in the writ petition for the inquiry into the matter by the Equal Opportunity Cell, there was no occasion for getting an enquiry done by Judicial Officers. It was said that even if the allegations were of a serious nature, the University’s power to examine such allegations through an appropriately constituted Equal Opportunity Cell ought not to have been taken away, as it was within the domain of the University to look into the students’ welfare and deal with situations as they arise.
Considering the circumstances, the Court opined that the Special Appeal be placed as a fresh case on 29-09-2026 before the appropriate court and if the inquiry report has been prepared then the same was directed to be placed before this Court on the next date. However, since the Court found that the inquiry should not have been conducted by Judicial Officers, the Court directed for the proceedings in the writ petition to remain stayed till the next date of listing of the Special Appeal.
The case was directed to be put up on 29-09-2026.
