Abstract
Higher education is exclusionary in principle but it must not perpetuate injustice as it is antithetical to the spirit of academia. This article aims to elaborate on the condition of Indian higher education specifically in response to the question of accessibility. The current systems designed to screen students indirectly favour individuals with inherent privileges. These privileges are converted into socially sanctioned claim on opportunities through the merit discourse. What does this entail for Dalits whose academic performance and potential is questioned based on flawed systems and methods?
The primary objective of this article is to understand the complexities in the current usage of merit in Indian admission policies in higher education. The article presents multiple interpretations of merit as understood by the respondents during the primary data collection from a public university. A detailed discussion on the themes culled out from the data collection will highlight the larger problem of fetishizing merit without understanding its deeply problematic structure.
The article also investigates the invisibility of caste discrimination and hypervisibility of caste otherwise in university space against the meritocratic principle that is considered to be a better alternative to caste-based quotas with respect to admission policies in higher education institutions.
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