The High Court of Karnataka has directed the Commissioner of Public Instruction to permit students, studying in the eight private unaided high schools that had failed to renew recognition of their institutes, to appear for the SSLC exam as per the guidelines issued by the Karnataka Secondary Education Examination Board (KSEEB) on March 21, 2022.
Justice P. Krishna Bhat passed the interim order while hearing the petition filed by Shanthi Nikethan High Court, Viveknagar, and seven other schools coming under the jurisdiction the Deputy Director of Public Instruction, Bengaluru South.
It has been contended in the petition that hall tickets of the students studying their schools and registered for the SSLC exam-2022 were withheld illegally by the authorities.
The KSEEB, on the direction of the Commissioner for Public Instruction, had not permitted these schools, which have not renewed their recognition, to download the hall tickets of 10th standard students registered for writing the SSLC exam commencing on March 28.
177 schools
However, keeping in mind the interest of students studying in such 177 schools that have failed to renew their recognition, the KSEEB had issued guidelines on March 21 to make arrangements for the students studying in such schools to appear for the SSLC exam through either the nearby government schools or other private recognised schools.
Claiming that officials of the Department of Public Instruction have stated orally that schools have to renew their recognitions annually and non-renewal of recognition is the reason for declining to allow downloading of hall tickets, the petitioner-schools have contended that they were given permanent recognition under the provisions of the Karnataka Education Act, 1983, and there is no provision in the Act for renewal of recognition annually.
The State authorities have no power to withhold the hall tickets of the students without issuing any notice to the school authorities on withdrawal of recognition as per the provisions of the Act, it has been claimed in the petition while contending that action of the authorities is violative of the constitutional rights of the students and the schools.
Declining of permission to the petitioner-schools to download hall tickets of their students at the last minute has caused mental agony for the students who are preparing to appear for the exam after successfully registering for it by paying requisite fees as per the norms, the petitioner-schools have claimed.
