No proposal to hike marks for IIT entrance exam: Sibal

“The government of India has no role to play and any report which suggests that there is a proposal to allow only those who obtain 80 per cent marks in their class 12 examination to sit for JEE is baseless.

“The only decision that has been taken by the IIT Council is that the IITs will submit a report in January,2010 to rationalise JEE. It is entirely their decision to decide on the eligibility criteria. It is they who will consider weightage is to be given to the 12 class examination”,he said.

He said the government has “no jurisdiction in the matter and the HRD ministry can in no way,either directly or indirectly,decide or make any proposal for a decision.”

Sibal’s remarks on Monday that the cut-off could be 80 to 85 per cent as against the present 60 per cent triggered a missive from Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar who wrote to Sibal opposing any such proposal saying it would discriminate against students with poor socio-economic status.

In a letter faxed to Sibal,Kumar said,”Such proposals will favour students with elite background and discriminate against students with poor socio-economic status. Any examination system should be inclusive. Any change in the existing examination system will have far reaching consequences,which is unwarranted.”

Voicing similar views,RJD leader Lalu Prasad described it as a “wrong step” and LJP leader Ram Vilas Paswan sought Prime Minister’s intervention.

Replying to Kumar’s letter,Sibal said the “alleged proposal” is “non existent”. “I,therefore,would like to set at rest your concerns by stating that there is no such proposal as referred to in your letter,” the minister wrote in his letter.

Sibal wrote that “the question of promoting students of elitist background and discriminating against students belonging to the weaker sections of society is entirely misconceived. The Congress party has always stood for equity in all government process and decision-making. All examinations must and should be inclusive”.