Ananya Joshi’s fight to gain admission to the National Institute of Design (NID) seems to have finally come to an end on September 23. The Gujarat high court has ordered the NID to admit the student. Incidentally, Ananya had topped the NID entrance exam for the master’s course.
The court criticized the institute for changing its stand to defend the cancellation of the student’s candidature due to a “lack of clarity in the instructions and the handbook”.
Ananya, a graduate of Design Village of Sri Venkateshwara University in Uttar Pradesh, took NID’s entrance test for Master of Design (ceramic and glass design) for the current academic year and stood first in the open category. On the basis of the same, she was allotted a provisional seat.
Since her final semester exam result was delayed, she was asked to submit a bona fide certificate from the university. Ananya supplied a certificate issued by the dean of her college along with the marksheets of previous semesters.
Despite this, she was told on July 21 that her candidature had been cancelled for want of requisite documents. NID told her there was no proof that the college was affiliated with the university. She was asked to provide the marksheet with the seal and stamp of the university or a bona fide certificate from the university.
The student approached the HC. NID cited its admission handbook and argued that the petitioner did not meet the eligibility criteria.
While the case was pending in court, the student received her marksheet and degree certificate and submitted the same to the institute, but in vain. NID did not allow her admission.
Justice Sangeeta Vishen recorded in her order that since the student had provided the marksheet or degree certificate issued by the university as required by NID, there was no hurdle to her gaining admission.
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