‘Justify overruling state decision over SSC exams’

MUMBAI: The Bombay high court (HC) has asked the petitioner who challenged the state government’s decision to cancel the SSC board exams for the academic year 2020-21 to provide substantial grounds for them to pass orders contrary to the decision of the state government. The court also sought to know how it could pass such orders while there was an apprehension that the third Covid wave would affect children in the age group of 10-18 years.

After the petitioner informed the court that he wanted to challenge the government resolution which announced the evaluation system for Class 10 students in lieu of exams not being held, the court directed the petitioner to amend the petition and include the challenge in it.

The division bench of chief justice Dipankar Datta and justice Girish Kulkarni, while hearing the public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Pune resident and retired professor Dhananjay Kulkarni, was informed by advocate Uday Warunjikar that as the situation had improved there was no harm in conducting the SSC board exams.

On May 28, state government had announced that students would be evaluated through an internal assessment formula and Class 11 admissions would be conducted through an optional Common Entrance Test (CET) and those unwilling to appear for CET would be admitted based on Class 10 marks.

The additional affidavit filed by state government on Monday in response to PIL justified the decision to cancel the Class 10 exams while postponing Class 12 exams by stating that students appearing for Class 12 exams were more mature, socially aware, bodily and mentally fit. It also referred to the threat of a third wave in July or August.

After hearing the submissions the bench asked the petitioner, “You want exams to be held. Do you think the Covid situation this year is better than last year? The state has said that the current environment is not conducive for conducting examinations. Can we substitute the decision?”

The bench said that by next hearing on June 3 SC would have passed orders pertaining to cancellation of Class 12 exams.