Gauhati High Court seeks report on admission of students from weaker section

Staff Reporter

Guwahati: The Gauhati High Court on Thursday directed the Department of School Education of the state to furnish up-to-date status regarding the admissions of students from weaker sections of society in unaided and non-minority schools in the state under the Right to Education Act, 2009.

The bench of Chief Justice Vijay Bishnoi and Justice N. Unni Krishnan Nair, while conducting a hearing in a public interest litigation case (PIL/30/2023), took into consideration the submissions made on behalf of the parties and directed the furnishing of the up-to-date report by the next hearing.

The HC had earlier, through an order dated April 2, 2024, observed that considering that the admissions in some of the unaided non-minority schools are still pending, the matter should be listed again today (May 9, 2024), enabling the authorities in the School Education Department to place the up-to-date status regarding the admissions of students in such schools in the state, as prescribed in Section 12(1)(c) of the 2009 Act.

However, the respondents failed to place the report before the court today also, saying that the matter is 'under process' and that the information would be furnished on the next day of hearing of the case.

During the hearing today, R. Mazumdar, the standing counsel of the Department of School Education, submitted that the information is under process and that the said information will be furnished before this court by the next date of hearing, which the bench fixed for June 10, 2024.

It is pertinent to mention that Section 12(1)(c) of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, provides for education in private, unaided schools to the extent of at least 25 percent of the strength of a class for children belonging to weaker sections and disadvantaged groups in the neighbourhood of the school. Section 12(1)(c) as well as its proviso also clarifies that once an admission is made either in Class-I or in Pre-primary classes, where available, the students under that category should be provided with free and compulsory elementary education till its completion, i.e., up to Class-VIII as per the said 2009 Act.

Earlier, to gloss over the state government's failure to implement Section 12(1)(c) of the 2009 Act, the state government provided the details of some measures adopted, like the launch of a portal and communication to Education Department officials to submit a report regarding admissions of students under the 2009 Act.

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