# PGCET aspirants protest over uncertainty on second counselling round 2026-10-05T20:11:18+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 2 independent outlets Students staged a protest at the Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA) office in Bengaluru on Monday, 5 October, demanding a second round of counselling for PGCET courses. The Hindu reports that a heated altercation broke out when KEA staff tried to remove students from the premises, while Times of India describes a scuffle after students sought to meet the executive director. Candidates have submitted an online petition with 6,508 signatures. The first round of seat allotment, announced on 25 September, allocated 23,164 seats. According to both sources, 9,574 MCA, 2,195 MBA, and 1,821 MTech seats remain unallocated. KEA has extended the fee payment deadline for first-round allottees three times, now mandating payment by 7 October and seat confirmation by 8 October, but has not announced a second round. KEA officials said Karnataka has approached the Supreme Court seeking an extension of the PG enrolment deadline, as the AICTE schedule requires classes to start on 15 October. Both outlets report that the next step depends on the court's decision. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Both The Hindu and Times of India report the same facts: 23,164 seats allotted, thousands vacant, and a protest after a delay blamed on the seat matrix submission and the Supreme Court-directed AICTE schedule. The Hindu foregrounds student frustration and the online petition, while Times of India includes detailed criticism from the All India Students' Association and a student's comment about skewed systems. Neither outlet adopts a pro-government or critical stance, both report the officials' explanation that the government has approached the Supreme Court for an extension. The uniform coverage reflects a factual dispute between aspirants demanding a second round and KEA citing a court deadline. The next move depends on the Supreme Court's response to Karnataka's appeal. ## Coverage Coverage: 2 sources, 2 neutral - thehindu.com (neutral report) Straight news report, attributes all claims - timesofindia.indiatimes.com (neutral report) Straight news report, includes student group quotes This brief was synthesised by AI from the 2 sources linked above, so one read covers every framing they carry. Tags: All India Council for Technical Education, Bengaluru, Karnataka Examinations Authority, PGCET, Supreme Court Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/pgcet-aspirants-protest-over-uncertainty-on-second-counselling-round/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/pgcet-aspirants-protest-over-uncertainty-on-second-counselling-round/#story-in-brief How this brief was made: an AI model read the reports linked above and wrote this summary and analysis, which were published automatically. Published briefs are sampled every hour by an automated quality check; the editor verifies its findings and approves corrections, and corrected briefs carry a dated correction line. Stance labels are editorial classifications of how each outlet framed this story, assigned by the same model, not ratings of the outlets. We do no original reporting. Methodology: https://indianopinion.org/ai-use-policy/