Bhubaneswar: Orissa High Court has come to the rescue of a candidate who lost an academic year after NLU Odisha mistakenly allowed her to compete under the domicile quota, directing the university to offer her admission if a seat falls vacant by November-end or pay Rs 1 lakh.
A Division Bench of Justice BP Routray and Justice Savitri Ratho passed the order on a petition filed by Punyatoya Barma, who had secured All India Rank 61 and Odisha Domicile Rank 6 in the entrance test for the three-year LLB course for 2026-27.
Barma had completed her Class XII from a school in Baragada but graduated from Kalinga University in Raipur, Chhattisgarh. She contended that NLUO had initially published eligibility criteria requiring candidates under the Odisha domicile quota to have passed Class XII in Odisha. She was subsequently allowed to appear for the entrance test and was granted provisional admission.
NLUO, however, submitted that the applicable 2026-27 criteria required candidates under the domicile quota to have completed their undergraduate programme from a recognised institution in Odisha with at least 60% marks. The Bench held that the applicable admission notification clearly prescribed graduation from an Odisha institution and Barma, having graduated in Chhattisgarh, was ineligible.
The court also rejected her plea of estoppel, relying on Supreme Court precedents that an erroneous selection contrary to prescribed eligibility rules cannot confer a right to appointment or admission.
Noting that Barma was not at fault and had lost an academic year after relying on the university’s provisional admission, the Bench directed NLUO to admit her if a seat falls vacant by November 30. If no seat is offered, NLUO must pay her Rs 1 lakh as symbolic compensation. The court clarified that the direction shall not be treated as a precedent.