Pune: Parsi Zoroastrian Community Seeks Minority Status In NEET-UG, Other Admission Portals
Pune: Parsi Zoroastrian Community Seeks Minority Status In NEET-UG, Other Admission Portals
Pune, July 23, 2025: The Poona Parsee Panchayat has raised serious concerns over the exclusion of the Parsi Zoroastrian community from minority categories in major national admission processes such as NEET-UG and JEE, despite being a constitutionally recognized minority under Article 30(1) and safeguarded by the National Commission for Minorities.
In a formal letter addressed to education authorities and examination boards, Adv. Marazban Irani, Chairman of the Poona Parsee Panchayat, highlighted that several admission forms fail to mention “Parsi Zoroastrian” under the minority roster. This omission, he said, is denying students from the community access to minority reservation benefits in educational institutions, adversely impacting their opportunities in competitive exams.
The Panchayat’s letter urged authorities to:
- Amend NEET-UG and other national-level application forms to include “Parsi Zoroastrian” under the minority category.
- Issue a circular to all state and central medical colleges clarifying that Parsi Zoroastrian candidates are entitled to minority reservation benefits.
- Set up an oversight committee to prevent such oversights in future national-level entrance examinations.
A Parsi doctor from Pune, whose 18-year-old daughter is a NEET-UG 2025 aspirant, also submitted a strong representation to the Ministry of Education, calling the exclusion a “violation of fundamental rights”. She emphasized that any delay in correcting this error would jeopardize not only her daughter’s future but also that of many Parsi aspirants across India.
“Parsis are one of India’s smallest and oldest communities, officially recognized as a minority. Excluding us from minority consideration in such crucial admission processes is unjust and unconstitutional,” the mother stated in her appeal.
The Poona Parsee Panchayat, established in 1951, reiterated its commitment to safeguard the community’s rights and expressed hope that authorities would act swiftly to address this issue before admissions close for the year.
