Shri. Narendra Modi
Hon’ble Prime Minister of India,
New Delhi.

Subject: Constitutional Violation of SC/ST/OBC Reservation at the IIMs

Honorable Prime Minister,

On behalf of IIM Global alumni group, we wish you a very Happy New Year!

We would like to congratulate you for the bold step taken to implement the constitutional mandate regarding implementation of reservation policy in all the institutes under running as Indian Institute of Management (IIM). The letter issued by the Union Ministry of Human Resources (MHRD) to various IIMs during November, 2019 was certainly the most important decision of Modi Government to correct the injustices done by past Government during the last 70 years. We had highlighted this issue in our past communication to the Government, and we are glad that the government has acted upon it with utmost urgency. However, we are concerned by the cold and repulsive response from the IIM authorities and we have also submitted letter online on PMO Portal. It has been highlighted in media that IIM authorities have written a letter to the Government requesting waiver of reservation rule for them in faculty recruitments. Two media coverage links are noted below for your perusal

Exempt us from faculty quotas, IIMs tell govt

https://thewire.in/caste/iims-seek-exemption-from-sc-st-obc-ews-teaching-quotas

They have asked this waiver under multiple grounds. First issue highlighted by them is the specialized and technical nature of role for IIM faculties. This is certainly not true as the post of Professor, Associate Professors and Assistant Professor post are not super specialised or technical in nature as per UGC guidelines, which required reservation for all the central universities, including Delhi University, Jawaharlal University etc. Furthermore, the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) institutions provide reservation in faculty position for highly technical subject like quantum physics, astronomy, chemistry etc. Then IIM dealing with management subjects like leadership, human resources, public finance, etc must have more diverse people representing the society for better outcome.

Another issue raised by IIM authorities is that they had never followed reservation citing government letter from 1975 issued by Indira Gandhi govt. This explanation shouldn’t be acceptable as the past injustices of IIM by not following reservation policy cannot be any ground to continue the injustice during present or future time. The IIMs must follow the law of the land and any letter cannot be above the rule provided by the Constitution of India. Thanks to your government for clarifying upfront that the new order supersedes all previous communication regarding reservation policy in IIM.

Further, IIM authorities have mentioned that they provide equal opportunity to everyone. This is far from the truth based on the current profile of faculties in all IIMs. About 95% of the faculties belong to non-reserved category. The current situation should put the IIM authorities in shame for claiming any waiver of reservation.

Further, the reason cited by few IIMs for not implementing reservation is that they are self- sufficient financially and don’t need government funding. This reasoning is totally irrational given they continue to operate on the land granted by Government and entire seed funding for setting up the institution came from government coffer. Moreover, the IIMs were set up as public institutions and every public institution must follow the constitutional provision of reservation irrespective of their financial profit or loss
performance.

During the past, the IIMs have highlighted an insufficient number of candidates belonging to marginalized communities for faculty positions. This line of reasoning cannot be accepted after 50 years of the top IIM existence. Top IIMs have bypassed reservation policy at doctoral (research fellowship or PhD programs) level, which prepared potential
candidates. Even after so much persuasion during past few years, only few IIMs like IIM Bangalore and some new IIMs are following reservation policy in PhD admissions. IIMs must take full blame for any lack of applicants from marginalized communities in faculty recruitments. Government must direct all the institutions to immediately implement reservation in doctoral research positions, along with faculty recruitments.

Additionally, IIMs have requested to grant them privileges of ‘Institute of Excellence’ category to escape the reservation requirement. This is the least expected from respected IIMs. Instead of leading as a role model in the industry and society, to fulfill the aspiration of cherished constitution, they are trying every means to evade the reservation.

We would like to see that IIMs become center of excellence in the world. Unfortunately, IIMs do not feature very highly in the world ranking. It may be worthwhile to understand what is that top 100 Universities doing differently that IIMs can learn and implement. Many of the top Universities are proactively, without any requirement of law, implementing affirmative action to create diverse and inclusive learning atmosphere. New research is largely dependent upon curiosity and new ideas, and idea generation needs diverse views and experiences. We firmly believe that the diverse pool of faculty and students will greatly help IIMs to bridge the gap between current status and true global recognition.

IIMs are duty-bound to implement reservation as per the law of the land. These institutions are set up with national interest, and they have long been illegally evading constitutional provision. IIMs should implement the reservation policy immediately and publish the caste diversity profile annually in their students and faculties to monitor the progress.

We request the Government to take cognizance of the current skewed profile of IIM campuses, and ensure reservation policy in faculty positions and all academic programs including research programs. Furthermore, the government should ensure that institutions should do more than roaster requirement to correct the past injustices and bridge the current gap due to fewer number of marginalized community members in faculty strength. Additionally, the government should consider giving a definite timeline for implementation of reservation in super-specialized roles and Institute of eminence. This will bridge the gaps between various sections of society and ensure every community participate in the nation-building. Moreover, Modi government’s era will be remembered by future generations of India for their noble actions on cherishing and implementing the reservation mandates and constitutional values in letter and spirit.

Sincerely,
Global IIM Alumni Network