Delhi HC Allows JNU Admissions Using Deprivation Points, Subject To Case Outcome

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday allowed Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) to continue admitting students using "deprivation points", which are additional marks awarded to applicants under the university's admission policy. While hearing a plea filed by JNU challenging a single judge's order restraining the university from admitting students using deprivation points, a division bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia said that all admissions made under the policy would remain subject to the outcome of the petition pending before the single judge.

The division bench noted that JNU has been awarding deprivation points since 1974 and that the single judge's order had brought the admission process to a halt. The bench said,

“The university shall carry on with the admission process as per the provisions in the e-prospectus, including the provisions which are under challenge before the single judge. However, any admission hence made will be subject to the outcome of the writ petition.”

The division bench also directed the single judge to expedite the proceedings and dispose of the matter at the earliest.

JNU Defends Deprivation Point Policy

JNU argued before the division bench that its deprivation-point policy was intended to ensure adequate representation of students from different parts of the country. The university had challenged an interim order passed on August 14 by Justice Jasmeet Singh, who restrained JNU from admitting students using deprivation points. The judge had observed that the policy could alter candidates' scores in the Common University Entrance Test (CUET).

According to JNU's 2026–27 prospectus, candidates can receive up to 12 deprivation points. The points are added to their admission score, with each deprivation point carrying three marks, allowing a candidate to receive up to 36 additional marks.

"If this is allowed, a university will be able to change a candidate's score on a competitive exam by ordinances, undermining the integrity of an admission exam. That is antithesis to the whole concept of a competitive exam," Justice Singh had observed while hearing a petition filed by a student seeking postgraduate admission to JNU.