HIMANI VERMA Vs. HIMACHAL PRADESH UNIVERSITY

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Six students pursuing Bachelor of Education (in short B.Ed.) in Himachal College of Education, Nalagarh, District Solan, H.P. have preferred instant writ petition primarily seeking quashing of date-sheet issued by the respondent-University for conducting B.Ed. second semester examinations scheduled from 07.10.2020. The petitioners have further prayed for directing the respondent to promote them and all other students of B.Ed. second semester to the third semester without conducting second semester examinations.

(2.) Petitioners were admitted in B.Ed. for the session 2019- 2021. The B.Ed. is a professional course of two years' duration comprising four semesters. Petitioners appeared in the first semester examinations held in January-February, 2020, the result of which is yet to be announced. The petitioners are now in the second semester. The examinations for the second semester were not held in time by the University. Vide Annexure P-3, a date-sheet for holding B.Ed. second and fourth semester examinations for regular college w.e.f. 07.10.2020 has been announced. Feeling aggrieved against scheduling of second semester examinations, six students have moved this Court praying for following reliefs :-

(3.) In support of the reliefs claim in the writ petition, learned counsel for the petitioners argued that (i) the University Grants Commission (in short UGC) has issued instructions dated 06/08.07.2020 to conduct terminal semester/final year examinations by 30.09.2020. In the instant case, the respondentUniversity did not conduct examination of final year/terminal semesters by 30.09.2020. The respondent-University now cannot hold second and fourth semesters' examinations w.e.f. 07.10.2020 ; (ii) due to COVID-19 Pandemic, various exams in the respondentUniversity were delayed or not conducted. The situation, so arisen, has not improved. Considering the health and safety of the students, the exams of second and fourth semesters of B.Ed. should not be held ; (iii) on the analogy of Central University, H.P., Delhi University, Punjab Engineering College, the petitioners and all other students of B.Ed. second semester should be directly promoted to the third semester without holding the second semester examinations ; (iv) holding the semester examinations as per the date sheet would mean utilization of at least one month (October, 2020) for the conduct of examinations. The petitioners, as of now, have not studied for the third semester, therefore, it is desirable they be promoted to the third semester without wasting any further time and third semester classes should be started immediately.