SAURAV MAHARANA Vs. COUNCIL FOR THE INDIAN SCHOOL

JUDGEMENT

(1.) PETITIONER being a minor has filed this writ petition through his father guardian assailing the decision under Annexure -12 taken by opp. parties 1 and 2 and seeking a direction to the opp. parties to allow him to appear at the Annual Indian School Certificate of Secondary Education Examination, 2007 through Montfort School complex Kansbahal.

(2.) THE case of the petitioner in nub is that he passed I.C.S.E. Examination in the year 2005 scoring 80.6% of marks from Jayashree Chemical Schools, Ganjam (opp. party No. 3) and took admission in Class -XI of the same school in the month of August of the same year and accordingly the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examination, New Delhi (Council in short) assigned him Registration No. B/OR015/007/07 under Annexure -1. He appeared in the First Terminal Examination held in the month of August, 2005 conducted by the said Jayashree Chemical Schools, Ganjam and prosecuted his study there up to 2.12.2005. Due to shifting of residence of his parents from Berhampur to Kansbahal and for some other reasons the petitioner took Transfer Certificate from Jayashree Chemical Schools on 3.12.2005 and got himself admitted to Class -XI Montfort School Complex, Kansbahal under Sundargarh district in the month of February, 2006 which was duly intimated by the Principal of Montfort school complex to the council and its Education Officer (opp. party No. 2). Because of serious heart problem of the mother of the petitioner and shifting of residence from Berhampur to Kansbahal, the petitioner could not prepare well for the Annual Examination of Class XI held in the month of March, 2006 and as such he could not do well in the examination. Opp. Party No. 2 vide letter dated 6.3.2006 requested the Principal Montfort School Complex, Kansbahal. (Opp. party No. 4) to send him the attested photo copies of Class XI admission form of the petitioner, his Class XI attendance certificate from Jayashree Chemical Schools, Berhampur, report card and the Transfer Certificate issued in his favour by said Jayashree Chemical Schools. In response to it, opp. party No. 4 by his letter dated 25.3.2006 transmitted all those documents to the Chief Executive and Secretary of opp.party No. 1. On 4.4.2006 opp. party No. 2 called upon opp. party No. 4 to send the attested photo copy of the attendance certificate of the petitioner and the original Registration card issued in his favour by the Council and accordingly opp. party No. 4 vide letter dated 28.4.2006 sent all the required documents to her. Again opp. party No. 2 by her letter dated 26.5.2006 called upon opp. party No. 4 to send the attested photo copy of Class XI Progress Card of the petitioner which was complied with vide letter, dated 19.6.2006. Further on 3.8.2006 opp. party No. 2 called upon opp. party No. 4 to clarify as to how could the petitioner be promoted to Class XII passing only three out of six subjects in Class XI examination. In his reply vide letter dated 6.9.2006 opp. party No. 4 clarified that due to change of school and some family problems the petitioner could not do well in Class XI examination, but with the hope that he would perform better in Class XII, he was given promotion from Class XI to Class XII. After such protracted correspondences in the matter, the decision of the Council that the petitioner should not be promoted to Class XII was conveyed to opp. party No. 4 through opp. party No. 2 vide letter under Annexure -12 dated 26.9.2006.

(3.) ACCORDING to the petitioner, he being eligible to get promotion from Class XI to Class XII has rightly been promoted and as such Annexure -12 deserves to be quashed. Annexure -12 also deserves to be quashed because of gross delay and laches of opp. party Nos. 1 and 2, inasmuch as while the petitioner was given promotion to Class -XII in the month of March/April, 2006 the letter under Annexure -12 was issued on 26.9.2006 after a long gap of 3 months, during which the petitioner was regularly attending the classes and paying fees to the school. He also filled up and submitted the examination form to opp. party No. 4 to appear in the Annual I.C.S.Examination, 2007. Hence, opp. party Nos. 1 and 2 are estopped from annulling the promotion of the petitioner vide Annexure -12 in view of the doctrine of promissory estoppel. It also violates the principle of natural justice inasmuch as no notice whatsoever was issued by opp. party Nos. 1 and 2 to the petitioner before taking the impugned decision. It is further case of the petitioner that some of the students standing in similar footing to that of him were allowed promotion from Class -XI to Class -XII by the council. Under such circumstances, the petitioner filed the writ petition praying to quash Annexure -12 as stated earlier.