SC to Hear OBC Quota Case on Monday; Calcutta HC Declines Interim Order on WBJEE PIL

The release of results for the West Bengal Joint Entrance Examination (WBJEE) continues to be delayed due to a legal dispute involving reservations for Other Backward Classes (OBC). The Supreme Court is set to hear the related matter on Monday, August 25.

In light of the upcoming Supreme Court proceedings, the Calcutta High Court, on Thursday, opted not to pass any interim order in a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) demanding immediate publication of WBJEE results. The court has scheduled the next hearing for September 2.

The PIL was filed by a parent of a candidate who appeared for the exam this year, citing the prolonged delay as detrimental to thousands of students awaiting college admissions.

The current legal standoff stems from an order issued by Justice Kausik Chanda on August 7, which directed the WBJEE Board to release a revised merit list within 15 days. The revised list was to include 7% reservation for 66 OBC communities recognized by the state government before 2010. That deadline expired on August 21.

However, this order has been challenged in the Supreme Court, prompting the High Court’s division bench to hold off on any further directions until the top court delivers its decision.

During Thursday’s hearing, the WBJEE Board’s counsel stated that while the board is prepared to publish the results, it is unable to proceed due to the ongoing legal proceedings. Justices Sujoy Paul and Smita Das De observed that since a deadline was already fixed by the single bench, no further directions could be issued at this time.

The petitioner argued that the delay is significantly affecting students, especially as it pushes WBJEE counselling timelines further into the academic calendar. Comparisons were made with other entrance exams like JEE Main, MHT-CET, and KCET, which all managed to declare results within a month or so of the examination.

With WBJEE counselling for 2024 having commenced in July, uncertainty surrounding the 2025 results could result in missed opportunities or forced compromises for aspirants.