ASHOK KUMARESH Vs. STATE

JUDGEMENT

(1.) HEARD .

(2.) THE petitioner, who appeared in the intermediate examination conducted by the Bihar Intermediate Education Council, Patna, in February -March, 1997, has filed this writ application for direction to the Bihar Intermediate Education Council and its functionaries to grant him one grace mark in Mathematics as he secured only 59 marks which is one mark less than the pass mark. The said prayer he has made in the light of the Regulation 7 of the Bihar Intermediate Education Council which, inter alia, provides that a candidate failing in one subject or two subjects only by not more than 4/8 per cent marks shall be given the marks he/she is short off and result shall be declared accordingly. As the petitioner, secured 59 marks in mathematics he should have been allowed one grace mark in that subject in terms of Regulation 7 and thereafter his intermediate resuJt should have been declared indicating that he has also passed in Mathematics. Authorities instead of granting him one grace mark in Mathematics declared his intermediate result taking into account the additional subject Statistics in which he had secured 106. marks.

(3.) BEFORE I notice the stand of the Education Council it is meet and proper that I should indicate the subjects which the petitioner had taken for his intermediate studies in S.S. Sinha College, Aurangabad, during the sessions 1995 -1997. He had offered Rashtrabhasha Hindi and English language and literature as compulsory subjects Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics were his optional subjects. Statistics was his additional subject and professional social work was his vocational subject. In the said examination petitioner passed in all subjects including the additional subject but he failed in one of three optional subjects Mathematics by one mark. Bihar Intermediate Education Council having noticed the fact that the petitioner had passed in all the subjects except in one optional subject Mathematics declared his result in terms of Regulation 6(b) by interchanging his optional subject Mathematics with additional subject Statistics. In recognition of the said declaration petitioner was granted marks statement and provisional certificate dated 30.5.1997, annexure -2 series. Perusal of the marks statement and provisional certificate dated 30.5.1997 of the petitioner indicate that he passed Intermediate Science Examination in 2nd division with Physics, Chemistry and Statistics as optional subject and Mathematics as additional subject. On that basis he was admitted in the B.Sc. course (Chemistry Honours) and continued his studies and he ultimately passed B.Sc. (Chemistry Hons.) in the year 2002. Having passed the B.Sc. (Chemistry Hons.) examination petitioner appeared in the Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination 2003 conducted by the Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination Board for being considered for admission in engineering course. While applying for admission in the engineering course he furnished the marko statement and the provisional certificate dated 30.5.1997 and on that basis he was allowed to appear in the Combined Competitive Examination and when he was declared successful in the examination he was called for counselling. During the counselling when the marks statement and the provisional certificate dated 30.5.1997 was examined in detail it was noticed that the petitioner had not passed in Mathematics and, as such, is not qualified for being considered for admission in the combined entrance test. Then petitioner approached the Bihar Intermediate Education Council for granting him one grace mark, so that, he is able to avail the offer for admission in the engineering course pursuant to the Bihar Combined Entrance Competitive Examination, 2003. Bihar Intermediate Education Council did not consider it appropriate to grant him one grace mark and then the petitioner filed this writ application for a direction to the Council to grant him one grace mark in Mathematics, so that, he may became eligible for admission in the engineering course, pursuant to a Combine Entrance Competitive Examination held in the year 2003.