AYSHA L V Vs. CENTRAL BOARD OF SECONDARY EDUCATION REPRESENTED BY ITS SECRETARY OFFICE OF THE CBSE NEW DELHI

JUDGEMENT

(1.) IN these two petitions, the petitioners are students who have passed examinations conducted by the Central Board of Secondary Education. IN the pass certificates and mark lists issued to them for those examinations, the dates of birth were wrongly included. The petitioners have filed applications for correction of the dates of birth in the school records as well as the pass certificates and mark lists on the strength of birth certificates obtained by them from the concerned Registrar of Births and Deaths. Their complaint in these writ petitions is that those applications are not being considered on the ground that as per the bye-laws applicable, there is a time limit of 5 years for submitting applications for correction of date of birth. It is challenging the said stand of the CBSE, these writ petitions have been filed.

(2.) A Division Bench of this Court has in a similar case directed the CBSE to consider such applications notwithstanding the limitation prescribed in the bye-laws. Following that judgment, hundreds of cases have also been disposed of by this Court directing such correction without reference to the time limit prescribed in the bye-laws. Still, the CBSC insists on a judgment of this Court to consider applications of such kind. At the same time, they have not challenged the Division Bench decision or the other judgments directing such correction. In the above circumstances, in some of these cases, I have already directed consideration of the applications of some of the petitioners on the basis of the birth certificates submitted by those petitioners. I have posted all these cases together to ascertain from the Central Board of Secondary Education as to whether at least hereinafter the CBSE is prepared to follow the earlier judgments to correct the dates of birth without reference to the time limit prescribed in the bye-laws.

(3.) THESE writ petitions are disposed as follows: The concerned officer of the CBSE is directed to consider the applications of the petitioners on the basis of the birth certificates produced by them as expeditiously as possible, at any rate, within two months from the date of receipt of a copy of this judgment. Needless to say, it would be open to the CBSE to ascertain the genuineness of the birth certificates produced by the respective petitioners. If it is decided to correct the dates of birth, the concerned Principal of the school shall also correct the dates of birth in the school records promptly. Where the applications have not yet been forwarded by the Principal of the school to the CBSE, he/she shall do so within one week from the date of receipt of a copy of this judgment.