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On 30 July, when the Delhi High Court finally ruled in his favour, calling the government’s rejection of his scholarship “ex-facie erroneous,” 24-year-old Dhiraj Jadhao should have felt relief.
The son of a bus conductor from Chikhlagad village in Maharashtra's Washim district and a Denotified Tribe student, he was, after all, the first in his family to dream of a master’s degree abroad. But ever since his admission to Singapore’s Nanyang Technological University, all Dhiraj had done was run from pillar to post to prove that his grades met the cut for the Indian government's National Overseas Scholarship (NOS).
The court finally agreed with him but by then, the semester had already begun. "...this Court is of the view that the rejection of the petitioner's candidature was unjustified," the Delhi High Court order read.
For Dhiraj, this was a bittersweet victory: “From where I come, even dreaming about foreign education is considered audacious. Imagine being so close to that dream and yet so far,” he said, holding on to a judgment that recognised his merit but couldn’t give him back his lost year.
Launched in 1954, the National Overseas Scholarship (NOS) scheme was designed to help students who come from marginalised communities pursue higher education abroad. Its beneficiaries include applicants from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Denotified and Nomadic Tribes, landless labourers, and traditional artisans.
Each year, only 125 fresh awards are offered, with strict criteria on age, marks, and income. The scheme covers tuition, living costs, travel, and insurance. But despite its promise as a tool of social justice, the NOS has drawn criticism for bureaucratic hurdles and arbitrary rejections, often leaving students to fight for their rights in court.
Pattern of Exclusion
"An opportunity to pursue higher education from a renowned foreign university won't help me and my family alone but will also allow me to open the doors for others from my community. Forget a University in UK, just being able to study in big Indian cities like Delhi or Mumbai itself is a big deal for people like us," Laxminarayan Dhirhe, a young Scheduled Tribe student from Chhattisgarh told The Quint.
Laxminarayan had everything that should have secured him a place under the National Overseas Scholarship. A valid ST certificate, an annual family income of barely Rs 3.8 lakh (far below the Rs 8 lakh ceiling), and admission to a foreign university.
Yet, when the results of the 2025 NOS cycle were declared, his name appeared in the list of rejected candidates.
The Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, responsible for awarding this scholarship, stated that Laxminarayan had allegedly failed to upload a caste certificate and proper income certificate. On the face of it, this looked like a procedural lapse on Laxminarayan's part. The catch, however, is that the Ministry insists on financial-year-specific income certificates, while the state of Chhattisgarh issues income and caste certificates with rolling or extended validity.
This non-compatibility, between documents issued by the Centre and governments in various states, locks many like Laxminarayan, who come from remote tribal areas with little to no legal or technical support, out of the scholarship scheme.
"What we are seeing are modern-day Eklavyas in the making," said Advocate Sushant Singh. "These are students who cracked international admissions through self-effort, qualified for the National Overseas Scholarship, and yet they find themselves stalled," he added.
A lawyer practicing in the Supreme Court of India and the Delhi High Court, Sushant is currently handling eight such cases of alleged wrongful rejection including those of Dhiraj and Laxminarayan.
Eklavya, a popular figure in the Hindu mythology is believed to be a tribal archer of exceptional talent, who was denied formal training due to his caste. Undeterred, he taught himself in solitude. Yet, when his talent was discovered, he was asked to sever his thumb as a token of gratitude, ending his aspirations.
In Laxminarayan's petition, Sushant invoked Articles 14, 15(4), 21, and 46 of the Constitution of India, arguing that the rejection was arbitrary, mechanical, and violative of the state’s duty to promote the educational interests of Scheduled Tribes.
He also drew on Delhi High Court precedents, which stress that “hyper-technicalities” cannot be allowed to defeat the purpose of the NOS.
Over 1000 Km from Laxminarayan's village in Chhattisgarh, Manish Kumar, a 23-year-old Scheduled Caste student from Sultanpuri in Delhi, also found his name missing from the list of provisionally selected candidates for the scholarship in July 2025.
The rejection was explained in one line: he had not submitted an income certificate for the financial year 2023-24. But Manish’s petition points out that in Delhi, much like Chhattisgarh, the Revenue Department does not issue income certificates tied to financial years. Instead, it issues certificates valid for six months on a rolling basis, covering the relevant period. These certificates are not compatible with the NOS portal.
"Even if the Court rules in my favour, it's impossible for me to join the University this year because the deadline to confirm my admission has already passed," Manish, a first generation learner, told The Quint.
He added that the NOS was his only hope to be able to pursue a Master’s in Computing Science at the University of Glasgow, one of the world’s top-ranked institutions.
"Students like me don't have money and resources for litigation. It's a miracle that I found an advocate who agreed to take up the case free of cost. Shouldn't the Ministry have a proper grievance redressal portal to deal with these issues?" Manish questioned.
Dhiraj and Laxminarayan too mentioned that they tried reaching the Ministry multiple times through emails and over phone but did not receive any help. "Admission to any university is a time bound procedure. If we miss deadlines, there's no way we can get admission. Even a day's delay can cost people their careers," Laxminarayan said.
Poorly Planned, Chronically Underfunded
The National Overseas Scholarship is no stranger to controversies.
For the current financial year 2025–26, the Centre allocated Rs 130 crore, which the Ministry described in Parliament as the scheme’s “highest-ever annual allocation.” Yet, after selecting 106 candidates for 125 available slots, the Ministry awarded provisional letters to only 40 candidates.
In a notification issued on 1 July, the Ministry said that the rest of the students will receive their award letters “subject to availability of funds.”
The issue was then raised in the Parliament by Leader of Opposition (LoP) Rahul Gandhi. "When a Dalit, backward, or tribal student wants to study, only then does the Modi government remember the budget," he said.
Soon after, provisional letters were awarded to all selected candidates. Many like Dhiraj, Manish, and Laxminarayan, however, were left to litigate.
The scholarship scheme has faced criticism beyond underutilisation of funds. In 2022, revised guidelines prohibited NOS scholars from pursuing research linked to Indian culture, history, and heritage. Critics, including international academic bodies, warned that this amounted to curbing the intellectual freedom of Dalit and Adivasi students.
Even those who manage to make it abroad on NOS have reported hardship. A government report tabled in Parliament mentioned that stipend amounts were being reviewed after scholars raised concerns about “difficulties in meeting living expenses abroad.”
The Way Forward
"These are not privileged students. Most come from households earning less than Rs 8 lakh per annum. A large number are first-generation learners from semi-rural or developing urban areas. They begin their journey by simply searching online how to study abroad, teaching themselves how to draft statements of purpose, seek letters of recommendation," Advocate Sushant told The Quint, emphasising why hyper technicalities must not come in the way of these applicants.
He added that the government should establish a statutory mechanism to insulate NOS from discretionary delays or internal fund reallocations.
"The government must introduce judicial and parliamentary oversight to monitor proper and timely disbursal and treat the NOS not as a discretionary welfare grant, but as a constitutionally linked reparative tool for equality."Advocate Sushant Singh
The stories of these three students highlight systemic failures of a scheme meant to correct historic injustice. Whether through impossible paperwork conditions, mismatched certificate formats, or funding freezes announced at the last minute, the National Overseas Scholarship has often acted less as a bridge and more as a barrier.
Even when the courts step in, as in Dhiraj’s case, relief comes too late.
Parliament answers acknowledge budget shortfalls, administrative lapses, and controversial restrictions that have left the scheme mired in distrust.
"Dr. Ambedkar once said, 'We must shape our course ourselves and by ourselves.' The students selected under the NOS scheme have done precisely that. They studied harder than most, with fewer resources than most, and earned every right to sit in the classrooms of the world," Advocate Sushant said as he prepared to file a new petition.