UGC Regulations Become New Flashpoint in Jammu and Kashmir’s Identity Politics

Tensions over caste, religion and reservation policies in Jammu and Kashmir have intensified following the introduction of the University Grants Commission’s (UGC) Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions Regulations, 2026. Although the regulations aim to address discrimination through the creation of Equity Committees, critics fear they could be misused and further polarise campuses that are already navigating delicate social and political fault lines. 

As the Supreme Court’s stay keeps the regulations in limbo, campuses across Jammu and Kashmir remain tense. What was designed as a framework to promote equity has instead exposed deeper anxieties over identity, opportunity and political power. 

Fear of Misuse on Campus

Absar Dar, 27, a research scholar at Kashmir University (KU), worries that the new framework could be weaponised. Wearing wide-rimmed glasses and sporting an unkempt beard, he studies developmental equity at KU’s management department. He believes the regulations could allow students to file complaints driven by personal animosity rather than genuine grievance.

“Caste discrimination is a deep-rooted issue outside Kashmir,” he says. “But with these regulations, anyone can lodge a complaint, even if it is fake.”

Last September, tensions ran high just a few streets from his department when an angry crowd tore down the national emblem installed at the Hazratbal mosque, mistaking it for a Hindu symbol. Incidents like these, he says, reflect how quickly religious sensitivities can escalate.

Kashmir University has several mosques on and around its campus, and afternoon prayers are a routine part of student life. Since the revocation of Article 370 on August 5, 2019, the university has admitted more Hindu students and recruited faculty from other parts of the country. While this has diversified the campus, it has also introduced new social dynamics.

Absar, who comes from a relatively affluent family of shawl exporters in Srinagar’s Soura area, says his research is driven by a desire for social improvement rather than a government job. Yet he fears the proposed Equity Committees could unfairly target Muslims, who form the majority at KU.

Political Flashpoints Beyond the University

The regulations have coincided with other contentious developments. Authorities recently shut down a medical college run by the Shri Mata Vishno Devi Shrine Board after right-wing groups objected to the admission of a majority of Muslim students. Meanwhile, Hindu students have demanded that the National Law University be set up in Jammu, where they are concentrated, while political parties in the Muslim-majority Kashmir region have pushed for it to be established in Srinagar.

For some Hindus, however, the regulations offer necessary safeguards.

Arun Singh, 27, a Hindi research scholar at KU, supports the move. “No one should face discrimination on the basis of caste or religion,” he says. “Protections are necessary.”

Gaggan Kumar, Assistant Professor at KU’s Department of Geography and Disaster Management, agrees that oversight bodies are needed. He believes much of the backlash stems from misunderstanding.

“There was a hue and cry on social media after the Supreme Court stayed the regulations,” he says. “But if implemented in good faith, these committees can provide an institutional mechanism to report discrimination.” He argues that fears of Equity Committees undermining general category students are based on misinterpretation.

Minority Anxiety and Majority Distrust

Still, anxieties persist. In the Union Territory, where Hindus are a minority overall but form a majority in the Jammu region, some Muslim students fear a surge in complaints from Hindu groups, particularly amid ongoing political demands for a separate state for Jammu.

Bharatiya Janata Party leader Devinder Kumar Manyal calls the regulations a “welcome step.” He argues that concerns of religious persecution faced by Hindus should also be addressed through institutional mechanisms. “If there are grievances, the Equity Committees can look into them,” he says, adding that colleagues in the medical profession have reported caste-based discrimination as well.

Senior Congress leader G N Monga, however, warns that the regulations could be politicised. “Religion has been brought into every sphere,” he says. “There is a real fear of misuse for vote bank politics.”

Among students, confusion over the rules remains widespread. Sannak Shrivats, 23, a law student at Jammu University and leader of the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP), says the regulations lack clarity. He points out that the committees would be headed by institutional heads or their nominees, which, he argues, leaves room for bias. “The intent may be good,” he says, “but the structure raises questions.”

Reservation Politics in the Background

The controversy unfolds against a broader backdrop of reservation politics. For more than a year, students from the open category have protested what they describe as shrinking opportunities in higher education and government jobs. The issue has taken a political turn, with Chief Minister Omar Abdullah facing criticism, including from within his own party, over his handling of the matter.

Before the 2024 elections that brought him to power, the BJP granted Scheduled Tribe status to the Pahari community, fulfilling a long-standing demand. With quotas for Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Other Backward Classes, and Economically Weaker Sections, open merit students claim that only around 40 percent of seats and jobs remain available to them.

Mohammad Rehan, 25, a political science graduate from KU preparing for local gazetted service recruitment, sees the reservation for Pahari speakers as justified. “If you speak Pahari, you’re often treated as inferior,” he says. “The reservation is fair. And Equity Committees are needed to investigate harassment.”

Yet others remain unconvinced. Junaid Ahmad Rather, 29, says he lost out on a fully funded research position to an Other Backward Class candidate despite having significantly higher marks. “My percentage was nearly double,” he says. “Who will protect the rights of open merit students?”

A geography student recalls a Gujjar student protesting against lessons delivered in Kashmiri, which he believes was a motivated complaint. “If an Equity Committee had existed then, it could have created serious trouble for the faculty member,” he says.

Sheikh Mohammad Shafi, 26, a sociology scholar, is concerned about procedural fairness. “If a probe must be completed in a few days, the burden shifts to the accused to prove innocence,” he says. “That needs to be addressed.”

For Sahil Parray, a BTech graduate who has twice attempted the Kashmir Administrative Service examination without success, the debate is personal. “Despite my efforts, I couldn’t make it to the final list because most posts go to reserved categories,” he says. “We are only asking for fair treatment.”