Jaya seeks control over college admissions

NDTV: "Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa has reacted sharply to Friday's Supreme Court's order giving unaided private professional colleges in the country freedom to decide their own admission policies. The court had ruled that state governments had no right to fix admission levels in such colleges. In a press release today, Jayalalithaa said she "proposed to immediately seek review of the seven-judge bench order by filing a review petition in the Supreme Court".

The Chief Minister also argued that leaving unregulated, privatised higher professional education completely to the mercy of market forces would appear to militate against the drive for a just society. Just a few months back the Tamil Nadu government scrapped the Common Entrance Test to professional courses to reportedly benefit rural students.

But the controversial move gave rise to a legal battle with thousands of students successfully challenging it in the Madras High Court. Meanwhile, politicians across Tamil Nadu have come out in support of Jayalalithaa's decision to file a review petition. MPs from the PMK and Congress said in Parliament today that the Supreme Court order will harm the interests of the weaker sections of society."