Maharashtra: Bombay High Court Halts Carry-On Scheme, Says Practice Undermines Quality Education

Pune, 17th November 2025: The Bombay High Court has observed that the carry-on scheme—which permits students with multiple failed subjects to be promoted to the next academic year—does not align with the objective of maintaining quality education. Calling the practice “unacceptable,” the court issued an interim order directing that the scheme must not be implemented in the ongoing academic year (2025–26).

A division bench of Justice Ravindra Ghuge and Justice Ashwin Bhobe delivered the order, stating that students who have already availed the benefit this year will remain subject to the court’s final verdict. The bench also clarified that, as per the state’s circular dated January 17, 2025, no new student should be granted carry-on concessions henceforth.

The court has directed all universities across Maharashtra that wish to present their stance to submit affidavits by November 29. The matter will be heard next on December 10.

The case stems from a petition filed by an LL.B student from Savitribai Phule Pune University. The petitioner had failed all eight first-year subjects and subsequently cleared only three — one through revaluation and two with grace marks. Despite continuing to fail in five subjects, he sought provisional admission to the third year, even after his second-year provisional admission had been cancelled. The court had earlier expressed shock at this request.

During the proceedings, the state informed the court that the carry-on scheme was originally introduced only for engineering students, and only for the 2024–25 academic year. However, four universities — Jalgaon, Solapur, Amravati and Kolhapur — extended it to 2025–26 and applied it across all academic streams. The bench questioned the rationale behind this extension.

In its affidavit, the state also disclosed that the scheme had been introduced following requests from public representatives. The court noted that four years have passed since the COVID-19 pandemic and students have already returned to regular examination patterns. It said it found no reasonable justification for implementing the scheme even in 2024–25.

The bench further remarked that such measures risk diluting academic standards and called into question the intent behind the scheme’s introduction.

The matter will be taken up again on December 10, when the affidavits submitted by universities are expected to be examined closely.