From Suspension To Relocation: How The Row Over Bareilly City Magistrate's Resignation Spiralled

Last Updated:January 29, 2026, 15:11 IST

Agnihotri, a 2019-batch PCS officer, resigned on January 26 in protest against the UGC regulations and the alleged insult of Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand.

Agnihotri was seen standing outside his residence holding a protest placard that read: “UGC Rollback — Withdraw the Black Law. India will not tolerate the insult of Shankaracharya and saints. #Boycott BJP #Boycott Brahmin MP-MLA.” (Image: X/appuaman)

The suspension, house arrest and subsequent forced relocation of Bareilly City Magistrate and PCS officer Alankar Agnihotri has further escalated the controversy over the University Grants Commission’s (UGC) newly notified Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions Regulations, 2026, triggering protests across Uttar Pradesh, covering districts including Lucknow, Deoria, Meerut, Ghaziabad, Pilibhit, Firozabad, Auraiya, Ayodhya and Varanasi. The notification has now been stayed by the Supreme Court.

Agnihotri, a 2019-batch PCS officer, resigned on January 26 in protest against the UGC regulations and the alleged insult of Shankaracharya Swami Avimukteshwaranand. Within hours, the Uttar Pradesh government suspended him on charges of indiscipline, attached him to the Shamli district, and ordered a departmental inquiry. His resignation has not been accepted so far.

Over the next 48 hours, the controversy intensified after Agnihotri claimed he was placed under house arrest at his Bareilly residence, with police deployed outside and restrictions imposed on his movement. While the district administration denied the term “house arrest," it admitted to heightened security citing law-and-order concerns.

From Suspension to Relocation

On Wednesday, amid rising tension and the mobilisation of hundreds of supporters outside his Bareilly residence, the administration escorted the suspended officer out of the district in a private vehicle. The move triggered chaos in Bareilly, as supporters blocked roads, lay in front of vehicles, raised slogans against the administration and clashed with police personnel.

For several hours, the police and administration maintained silence on Agnihotri’s whereabouts, fuelling speculation over whether he had been detained. It later emerged that he had been sent to Lucknow and relocated to his relative’s residence in the Alambagh area, where a heavy police deployment has been stationed outside the premises. Lucknow Police have confirmed that his activities are being closely monitored.

Speaking to the media in Lucknow, Agnihotri alleged that the Bareilly administration acted under a “pre-planned strategy" to remove him from the district.

“The Bareilly administration sent me to Lucknow as part of a pre-decided plan. My relocation has been done formally, almost like a transfer. However, there was no such incident in Bareilly that warranted my removal," he said.

Administrative sources, however, maintained that the decision was taken purely as a preventive measure to defuse tension, as the situation in Bareilly had become increasingly volatile.

What the UGC Regulations Proposed

The UGC had notified the Promotion of Equity in Higher Education Institutions Regulations, 2026 on January 13. The regulations mandated the formation of grievance redressal committees, helplines and monitoring mechanisms in universities and colleges to address caste-based discrimination, with particular focus on complaints from Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST) and Other Backward Class (OBC) students.

The Centre had defended the regulations as a necessary reform to ensure inclusivity, accountability and institutional sensitivity towards historically marginalised communities.

Critics, however, argued that the framework creates a presumption of guilt against students and faculty from the general category, opens the door to false complaints and risks intensifying caste divisions within educational institutions rather than reducing discrimination.

Protests Spread Across Uttar Pradesh

The Agnihotri episode had galvanised opposition to the UGC rules across Uttar Pradesh. Protests erupted in Lucknow, Deoria, Meerut, Ghaziabad, Pilibhit, Firozabad, Auraiya, Ayodhya and Varanasi.

In Pilibhit, youths shaved their heads as a mark of protest. In Ghaziabad, demonstrators wore shrouds and chains, describing the regulations as a form of “social criminalisation." Clashes were reported in Deoria and Meerut, where police intervened to disperse crowds.

Several BJP youth leaders and local functionaries resigned, expressing dissatisfaction with the UGC regulations. In Ayodhya, a Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha district president stepped down, while BJP district committee members resigned in Varanasi and Ghaziabad.

The controversy had exposed deep political divisions too. Former BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh described the regulations as “divisive" and urged unity among upper castes, backward classes and Dalits to oppose what he called a socially destabilising policy.

Senior BJP leader Kalraj Mishra raised concerns about the composition of grievance committees and demanded safeguards against false complaints.

In contrast, BSP chief Mayawati dismissed the protests, stating that opposition to the regulations reflected caste-based prejudice rather than genuine concern for social justice.

Poet Kumar Vishwas had shared a poem on social media describing himself as an “abhaga savarna," calling for a rollback of the regulations. Spiritual influencer Harsha Richhariya had warned that the rules echoed historical anti-upper-caste rhetoric and could harm social cohesion.

What The Supreme Court Said

The Supreme Court on Thursday stayed the UGC equity regulations, calling them “vague", and stressed that the unity of India must be reflected in all educational institutions.

The bench led by Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi observed that some communities are enjoying better privileges than others. “In most states now, even the legislature has realised that even in reserved committees, people have become haves and have nots," CJI Kant remarked.

“After 75 years (of Independence), whatever we have gained towards a casteless society… are we going in a regressive direction?" he added. Justice Bagchi observed that Article 15(4) empowered the states to make special laws for scheduled castes and scheduled tribes, but warned against any framework that could lead to social segregation within educational institutions. “The unity of India must be reflected in educational institutions. I hope we don’t go to segregated schools like US where blacks and whites went to different schools," he said.

The court held that the UGC regulations 2026 will remain in abeyance and the 2012 regulations against discrimination will continue. “The petitioners cannot be left remediless. We are not on general category complaints; the redressal system for the marginalised should remain in place," CJI Kant said.

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