'Improvement Student Is Equally A Victim of Pandemic":Delhi HC Extends Benefit of SC's Scheme On CBSE Cancelled Exams To Improvement Students [Read Judgment]

The Single Bench of Justice Prathiba M Singh has further held that students who appear for improvement exams do not automatically forfeit their previous scores and have the option of choosing the same if the scores achieved in improvement exams are lesser.

The order has come in a plea moved by a Class XII student, Sanyam Gupta, who wanted to be treated at par with the regular students for the evaluation of his improvement exam in Business Studies which was cancelled in light of the COVID19.

CBSE had opposed the said plea by submitting that it had prepared a separate scheme of evaluation for students who had opted to appear for an improvement exam.

The scheme approved by the Supreme Court in its orders dated June 25 and 26, CBSE submitted, was only meant for regular students who did not get even a single chance to appear for the subjects that were cancelled.

While highlighting that the students who appear for the improvement for the improvement exams have to forego the marks they had originally received, CBSE argued that the improvement students cannot be treated at par with the regular students who had approached the Supreme Court seeking the approval for a scheme.

CBSE, therefore, submitted that the improvement students whose exams were cancelled have an option of either dropping the idea of an improvement exam and retain old score, or appear for the cancelled exam whenever it is conducted.

After perusing the submissions as well as the previous judgments, the court observed that as per Bye-law No. 44 of the CBSE, CBSE issues marks-sheet only for the subject where the student takes the improvement exam and not a consolidated marks-sheet for all the subjects taking into account the previous year's scores. Thus both the mark-sheets issued by the CBSE are valid. Therefore, the choice is open for such students to opt for whichever scores he/she wishes to.

The court said:

'Improvement examinations are not meant to punish a student for taking the said exam. It is meant to encourage a student who wishes to aspire for better academic growth or career prospects to study better and give another shot at the examination to improve his marks. Thus, in a case where the student scores better in the Improvement examination, reliance can be placed on the same. In the same breath, if a student scores lesser, the earlier marks where he/she had scored better is not taken away.'

On the issue of extending the scheme of the Supreme Court to improvement students as well, the court said:

'The student having sacrificed one full year and also having improved his scores in two of the subjects to a much higher level than what he had scored in the previous year, in the opinion of the Court, there is no reason as to why he should be treated differently from the regular candidates. An improvement student is equally a victim of the pandemic just like a regular student. In the case of an improvement student like the Petitioner, the cancellation leads to a greater loss in as much as his entire effort and hard work for the last one year has been put to naught.'

The Petitioner in this case was represented by Mr Rishi Manchanda and Mr Arun Kumar.

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