HARSH SALUJA Vs. GOVT. OF NCT OF DELHI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) THE petitioner before this Court was a student of Salwan Public School. In the first term examination, the petitioner obtained 07 out of 100 marks in Economics and 26 out of 100 marks in Mathematics. In the second term, the petitioner got 34 out of 100 marks in Mathematics and 46 out of 100 marks in Economics. As per the instructions issued by Directorate of Education, Government of NCT of Delhi, which are binding on the school, in subjects, without practical work (Mathematics is a subject without practical work), while computing he marks in class XI as a whole, ¾ of the marks obtained in the second term examination and the marks obtained in the first term examination out of 25 marks have to be taken into consideration. Computed accordingly, the petitioner obtained 25.5 marks in the second term and 6.5 marks in the first term, thereby making a total of 32 out of 100 marks in Mathematics. In Economics, as per the above-referred instructions of the Directorate of Education, 14/19 of the marks obtained in second term had to be added to the marks obtained in the project work out of 05 at school level plus marks obtained in the first term examination, out of 25 marks. Computed accordingly, the petitioner obtained 35.64 out of 100 marks in Economics.

(2.) ADMITTEDLY , the passed marks were 33 out of 100 in Mathematics as well as in Economics. However, the petitioner was detained in class XI, on the ground that he had failed in Mathematics as well as in Economics. The aforesaid decision was taken by the school on the basis of a uniform policy adopted by it to give equal weightage to the marks in the first term as well as marks in the second term in all subjects. Being aggrieved from his being detained in class XI, the petitioner is before this Court by way of this writ petition.

(3.) ADMITTEDLY , Salwan Public School is a recognized unaided school. The school, therefore, is under an obligation to comply with the said instructions unless it adopts a more stringent criteria with the prior approval of the Directorate of Education. The request in this regard has to be submitted on or before 30th April of the relevant session. Moreover, the schools are required to bring the instructions to the notice of the students and their parents or guardians immediately on the commencement of the session and in any case by the 15th day of April. This is not the case of the respondent-school that it had taken prior approval of the Directorate of Education to adopt a criteria more stringent than the criteria stipulated in the instructions dated 08.09.2001. In the absence of approval from the Directorate of Education, the respondent-school could not have adopted a criteria more stringent than the criteria, notified by the Directorate. Therefore, any reliance upon the more stringent criteria adopted by the school would be wholly misplaced. The school, therefore, was under an obligation to adopt only the criteria notified by Directorate of Education, while computing the performance of the students. Applying the aforesaid criteria, notified by Directorate of Education, the petitioner passed in Economics though he did not pass in Mathematics in the class XI examination.