Pune: FTII Students Demand Halt to Admission Process Over Reservation Policy Discrepancies
Pune: FTII Students Demand Halt to Admission Process Over Reservation Policy Discrepancies
Pune, October 27, 2025: The Film and Television Institute of India (FTII) Students’ Association has urged the administration to halt the ongoing admission process, alleging irregularities and a lack of transparency in implementing reservation provisions in the final merit list published on October 24.
The controversy began after the institute redacted its initial merit list, released on October 17, citing “calculation-related discrepancies.” A revised list was later issued by the Office of Controller of Examination, which stated that the original selections would remain unchanged but additions were made to certain courses “as a one-time measure.”
In a statement released Sunday, the Students’ Association alleged that the merit list failed to correctly reflect candidates belonging to reserved categories. “A reserved-category candidate who scored higher marks was placed only in the general category waiting list and not selected under the reserved category. Such candidates should be included in both categories,” the association said.
Despite the revision, doubts persist. In the Master of Fine Arts (Screen Acting) programme, 23 candidates were admitted instead of the usual 16, with only 8.7% Scheduled Caste and 4.35% Scheduled Tribe representation—figures that fall short of the government-mandated 15% and 7.5% quotas respectively.
The admission process at FTII involves two stages: written papers in Stage I and a mixed-format assessment in Stage II. The students’ association has alleged that only the final merit list was shared publicly, while stage-wise results were withheld, making the reservation process “opaque.”
According to the association, “Reservation for candidates is frozen only during parts of Stage I. How and when the inclusion in respective reserved categories is finalised is not documented. This misapplication of vertical reservation reinforces a discriminatory ‘meritocracy’.”
On Monday, students staged a protest outside the director’s office, demanding that the admission process and payment portal be frozen until the institute releases a clear explanation of how reservation rules were applied. Posters with messages such as “Share rules of reservation policy” and “No place for caste discrimination” were displayed across the FTII campus
