Atithi devo bhavah (Guest is God), for me, hold true as long as guests come for a short stay - unlike this distant cousin of mine from Bokaro, who had to stay with me for almost a month trying to land a Delhi University (DU) admission.

I had no recollections of who she was and how we were related, but I was told that I had to take her around Delhi for four weeks. DU, after all, was bringing out five cutoff lists this year. With no pre admission forms, students had to apply in colleges after the cutoffs were announced.

Now, why would DU do this, I have often wondered in annoyance. They should take into consideration people like my cousin who come from far-off places seeking a seat, and are compelled to stay with people like me whose vacations get ruined by visiting relatives.

My cousin scored 93.4 percent in the 12th grade and wanted to pursue BCom (honours) - just like hundreds and thousands of other students this year. She even made it to several colleges in the first list itself, like Dyal Singh, Deshbandhu, Bharti, Janki Devi, Maharaja Agrasen, Shivaji and many others.

But Bokaro girl was so enamoured by the charms of the north campus colleges that she refused to get admitted into off-campus ones.

So, what followed was the never ending wait for successive cutoff lists of colleges good enough for my cousin to be published.

Meanwhile, I wondered why the steel city could not have a university of its own where students like my cousin could study.

So, after the second list was out, many colleges had filled their BCom seats. But my cousin still made it to Indraprastha college, Kalindi, Kamla Nehru, Zakir Hussain and others.

However, my dear cousin stuck by her guns and did not even look at these offers. It could only be Hindu or Has Raj for her, she had decided. Her mother, though, kept trying to convince her to take up Miranda House or Daulat Ram offer - her ulterior motive being to have her daughter study in a women's college and staying in a hostel. 

But the daughter had other plans. So, amidst all the drama, my cousin, also wanted to try her luck at the sports and ECA quota (extra-curricular activities) having just a handful of certificates (most of them being ones certifying just participation) that too earned in school.

And just when almost all colleges had closed almost all their courses, came the fourth list. She had finally made it to Hans Raj. She was very happy, but I was elated.

Though I never understood her fascination with that college, but I think she wanted to study there because actor Shah Rukh Khan was an alumnus.

However, my happiness was short-lived. Turns out Hans Raj doesn't have a girls' hostel. So my Bokaro cousin is going to stay with me for the rest of the course!