Students’ Academic Futures in Limbo as Supreme Court Halts Karnataka School Board Exams
On Tuesday, the Supreme Court intervened to halt ongoing board examinations in Karnataka schools for students in classes 5, 8, 9, and 11. This decision came in response to the case of Registered Unaided Private Schools Management Association Karnataka vs State of Karnataka and others.
A bench comprising Justices Bela M Trivedi and Pankaj Mithal found that the State’s decision to conduct board exams for these classes appeared to violate Section 30 of the Right to Education Act, which prohibits such exams.
The bench stated that the exams, which had been deemed illegal by a single-judge, should not have been conducted. They emphasized that proceeding with these exams would adversely affect the examination system and students’ academic careers. Therefore, the bench directed that the exams should not continue.
During the hearing, Justice Mithal directed the counsel for the Karnataka government not to wait for the formal uploading of the court’s order.
Senior Advocate Devadatt Kamat represented the Karnataka government, while Advocate KV Dhananjay represented the appellants, a group of private unaided schools in the state. The appeal was lodged against a decision of a division bench of the Karnataka High Court, which had permitted the state to hold board examinations for these classes despite an earlier order by a single judge halting the exams.
The state argued that the exams were not conventional board examinations but rather a ‘summative assessment’ that students were not required to pass. The purpose, according to the state, was to provide academic preparation and ensure students were ready for future board exams.
The bench questioned the purpose of these exams, to which the state argued that they serve as a means to evaluate students’ academic progress.
However, the apex court ultimately stayed the exams, finding the single-judge’s order halting the exams to be legally sound. The court emphasized the urgency of resolving the matter and directed the High Court to expedite its proceedings.
Advocate Dhananjay was supported by a team of lawyers in this matter.
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