Mumbai : In a notable development in legal education admissions, the Maharashtra State CET Cell reports that 100% of seats under the Centralized Admission Process (CAP) for the 3-year LLB program have been filled for 2025. However, a sharp disparity has emerged: more than half of the seats reserved under the Economically Weaker Section (EWS) quota remain unfilled.
Full CAP Allotment Achieved, But EWS Seats Lag
This year, all 19,895 seats across 218 law colleges in Maharashtra have been allotted through the CAP process.
Despite the full CAP allotment, 51.25% of EWS quota seats (860 of 1,678 seats) remain vacant. Only 818 EWS seats are filled.
The management quota seats have nearly reached full occupancy as well, with 99.95% allocated — only one seat remains unsold.
Admission & Seat Matrix — The Numbers
Total sanctioned seats (3-year LLB, all quotas): 23,859
Seats filled overall (after CAP + institutional rounds): 22,917
CAP intake (for CAP rounds only): 19,975 seats; CAP admissions achieved: 19,894
EWS + J&K intake: 1,679 seats
EWS + J&K admissions thus far: 819
What This Reveals & Possible Reasons
The contrasting outcomes in CAP vs EWS allotments highlight a few concerns:
Awareness / Access Barrier: Many eligible students under EWS may not have applied or pursued the admission process fully.
Documentation / Verification Issues: Some may have failed to furnish required proof or get their EWS certificate validated in time.
Preference Bias: Students in reserved or general categories may prefer non-EWS seats if they can secure them, leaving EWS seats overlooked.
Fee / Affordability Concerns: Even within EWS, the cost or location of colleges may make some seats unattractive to candidates.
What Happens Next?
The institutional round(s) (beyond CAP) will attempt to fill remaining vacant seats, including EWS seats, as per norms and rules.
Authorities may issue vacant seat lists for institutional rounds, giving final chances to eligible students.
Monitoring bodies could investigate why EWS seats remain unfilled despite overall saturation, and suggest measures (better outreach, ease of documentation, relaxation in procedures) in future years.