BREAKING : Supreme Court Allows Kerala Govt To Hold Plus One Exams Offline; Dismisses Plea Against It

The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a petition filed against the decision of the Kerala Government to hold Plus One (Class XI) exams in offline mode.A bench comprising Justices AM Khanwilkar and CT Ravikumar observed that the reasons given by the State Government in its affidavit were convincing and hence the petition was liable to be dismissed."We hope and trust that the authorities will take necessary precautions", the bench observed in the order.The bench noted that the examinations of the APJ Abdul Kalam University which was attended by over one lakh students were held in August and NEET exam with lakhs of students were held last week. The bench said that it passed the interim order of stay earlier in view of certain reports that the third wave was likely to happen by the third week of September."Earlier we intervened, because there were reports that third wave was likely in the third week of September. But now third wave is not in the offing immediately", Justice Khanwilkar said.The counsel for the petitioner Rasoolshan, Advocate Prashant Padmanabhan, argued that the State Government's counter-affidavit does not give out satisfactory reasons and does not answer the earlier queries posed by the bench.Padmanabhan submitted that while staying the exams on September 3, the Court had asked the State's counsel if the decision was taken after taking into account the high rates of COVID cases in Kerala. He argued that the affidavit does not answer that and does not state if the decision has been taken after consulting the experts.However, the bench did not agree with these arguments of the petitioner, and said that the State has given convincing explanations."We are convinced with explanation offered by state. We hope & trust that authorities will take all precautions & necessary steps to ensure no untoward situation is faced by students who are of tender age and are appearing in the exam", the bench recorded in the order dismissing the petition. On September 3, a bench led by Justice AM Khanwilkar had stayed the conduct of exams, which were to commence from September 6. The bench, also comprising Justices Hrishikesh Roy and CT Ravikumar, had asked if the Government has factored in the "alarming situation" in Kerala where the COVID cases are rising sharply, accounting for nearly 70% of the total active cases in the country. The bench had observed that it found force in the petitioner's argument that the State has not taken into account the prevailing pandemic situation while taking the decision.Later, the Kerala Government filed an affidavit seeking permission to conduct the exam. The affidavit filed by the the Principal Secretary to the General Education Department stated that holding of exams in online mode will prejudicially affect several students belonging to the backward classes who lack access to computers and mobile phones. The state said that the marks of Plus One are added to the marks of Plus Two (Class 12) for evaluation for the purposes of higher education, and hence it was imperative to hold the exam. The State sought to assure the Court that the exams will be held in strict compliance with the COVID-protocol. It pointed out that exams for Class 12, SSLC and entrance examinations, with several lakhs of candidates, were physically held successfully. The state also said that deferring the Plus One exams will disrupt the academic cycle and affect the future of the students.The petitioner approached the Supreme Court challenging the judgment of the Kerala High Court which refused to interfere with the decision of the Government to conduct Plus One exams.Case Title: Rasoolshan A v. The Additional Chief Secretary & Ors.Click Here To Read/ Download Order

BREAKING : Supreme Court Allows Kerala Govt To Hold Plus One Exams Offline; Dismisses Plea Against It

Srishti Ojha

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