'We Have To Rise Above The Law': SC Asks IIT Bombay To Assist Dalit Student With Admission

The Supreme Court recently came to aid a Dalit student who was denied admission to the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Bombay. A 17-year-old boy named Prince Jaibir Singh was trying to make the final payment online. However, he failed to complete the procedure due to an unfortunate technical glitch. Hailing from Ghaziabad, Singh got 864th rank in the Scheduled Caste category, making him eligible to apply for a B.Tech course in Civil Engineering.

A bench headed by Justices DY Chandrachud and AS Bopanna heard a petition filed against a Bombay High Court decision. The ruling did not allow the student to make the Seat Acceptance Fee post the deadline, therefore denying him admission to the institute. The last date was October 31, by which he was supposed to make the payment. According to LiveLaw, the High Court judgment stated that the petitioner should have sought help from the grievance redressal mechanism available at the time.

The Events That Ensued

As reported by the Hindustan Times, Singh completed all the formalities on the Joint Seat Allocation Authority (JoSAA) portal by October 29. Falling short of money, he asked his sister to transfer money into his account the next day, October 30. He made several attempts to pay the fee, but he could not do so until the time was up. Due to strict deadlines, he was not allowed to try again as the portal had closed by then.

Upholding the rules, the Bombay High Court said that these guidelines are not made to harass the candidate but make the process easier. Therefore, every candidate must adhere to them, and no notable exceptions should be made under any circumstances. Stating that he "entailed the consequence of rejection", they declined his request to allow him to make the payment.

'A Humane Problem'

The bench came to the boy's rescue. Hindustan Times quoted, "Who wants to forsake an IIT-Bombay seat? Ultimately, these are problems of resources. Let us look at this as a humane problem, beyond legal intricacies." When asked about looking for a seat, the advocate said all seats are complete in the category.

To this, the apex court responded, "This is a case where we have to look beyond the law. He has aspirations and is meritorious. For all you know, he could be a leader of the nation ten years or twenty years down the line." Further, the judges added that they would protect him by exercising Article 142 of the constitution, allowing them to issue orders to do complete justice. However, this cannot be used as a precedent in other cases.

Also Read: 'Bal Vikas Khazana': A Bank Catering To Children, By Children, Runs In Slums Of Jharkhand