BENGALURU: The division bench of Karnataka High Court on Monday reserved its order on the appeals filed by the state government against quashing of Board examinations for Classes 5, 8 and 9 by a single judge.
A division bench of Justices K Somashekar and Rajesh Rai K reserved the order after the conclusion of the arguments by the state government and counter-arguments by the counsel of the RTE Students and Parents Association and the petitioners.
Allowing the petitions filed by the Registered Unaided Private Schools Management Association Karnataka and the Organisation for Unaided Recognised Schools, the single judge had quashed the board exams. Against this, the state government filed the appeal before the division bench which passed the interim order permitting the state government to conduct the Board examinations.
Aggrieved petitioners then approached the Supreme Court, which set aside the division bench’s interim order and remitted the matter to the division bench to decide it on its merits.
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The counsel for the petitioners argued before the division bench that the state government does not have the power to issue the notifications to hold Board exams without framing the Rules under the Karnataka Education Act. The state cannot conduct Board exams for students of elementary education, from Class 1 to 8, as per the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, they argued.
The RTE Students and Parents Association contended that as per the provisions of the Karnataka Education Act, the state government has to consult the parents, teachers and schools before deciding on Board exams that affect a large number of students. Even the Right to Education Act does not permit board exams for elementary school students between 6 and 14 years.