The Admission Regulatory Authority (ARA) has initiated action against alleged irregularities in admissions under the minority quota in several engineering colleges in the Nagpur region. The probe follows the detection of suspected fake documents submitted by students seeking admission through minority category seats. According to sources, nearly 450 students are suspected to have secured admissions by submitting questionable documents. Of these, around 320 students appeared before ARA Chairman Samir Kumar Biswas and his team during a hearing conducted in Nagpur, while the remaining students did not attend the inquiry proceedings.

 

The issue pertains to admissions granted under minority quotas available in certain educational institutions based on language and religion. Such institutions reserve up to 51 per cent of their seats for eligible minority students. To avail of these seats, candidates are required to submit documents establishing their minority status.The Directorate of Technical Education (DTE), while scrutinising admission records for the 2025-26 academic session, reportedly found discrepancies in several documents. Officials noticed variations in signatures of the same school principals, inconsistencies in leaving certificates, and cases where students whose official records identified them as Hindus had separately obtained certificates declaring Hindi as their mother tongue to claim eligibility under the Hindi minority quota.

 

Officials believe that the growing demand for Computer Engineering and allied branches has contributed to the malpractice. Students unable to secure seats in preferred branches due to lower merit scores were allegedly approached by agents promising admissions under minority quotas. These agents are suspected of arranging certificates declaring Hindi as the students’ mother tongue, thereby making them eligible for minority category seats. Investigators suspect that some clerical staff at junior colleges may have assisted in procuring such certificates. The alleged racket is believed to have operated for several years, enabling students to gain admission under reserved minority seats. Upon detecting the irregularities, the DTE informed the Admission Regulatory Authority, which subsequently conducted hearings in Nagpur.

 

Representatives of the institutions concerned maintained that colleges merely rely on documents submitted by applicants and have no independent mechanism to verify their authenticity during the admission process. A total of 11 autonomous engineering institutions are reportedly linked to the matter. Students given opportunity to present evidence The ARA has heard the statements of more than 300 students and granted them three days to submit supporting documents substantiating their claims. The institutions involved have been directed to submit details of all concerned admissions to the Regional Office of the DTE within seven days. The Regional Office will thereafter forward its report to the ARA for further action. If the Authority concludes that fraudulent documents were used, the admissions of the students concerned could be cancelled. The case has drawn comparisons with previous admission-related controversies, including a matter in Haryana where two upper caste students allegedly sought medical admissions by claiming conversion to Buddhism. The Supreme Court had expressed serious reservations in that case.