Calcutta High Court: In a case where the affiliation of the school was discontinued by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, endangering the further of 76 students enrolled in Class X of the said school, a single-judge bench comprising of Biswajit Basu, J., takes measures to protect the interests of the Class X students by appointing a Special Officer to ascertain the true number of eligible students and directed the school authorities to fully cooperate by providing all relevant records to the Special Officer.
Brief Facts
In the instant matter, the petitioners are the guardians of 76 students enrolled in Class X at St. Augustine’s Day School, Kolkata. These students were scheduled to take the Class X examinations in the year 2024, conducted by the Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations (the Board). But the school’s affiliation with the Board has been suspended.
The school authorities failed to register the Class X students with the Board, despite this being a prerequisite. The affiliation of the school was discontinued by the Board on September 16, 2022, due to ongoing irregularities.
Moot Point
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Whether the school’s actions, including collecting registration fees from Class X students and admitting them with the false claim of continued affiliation, amount to misconduct or misrepresentation?
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How to safeguard the future of the Class X students who may be unable to sit for the Board examinations due to the school’s actions?
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Whether the Court should intervene to protect the students’ interests?
Court’s Decision
The Court was deeply concerned about the welfare of the Class X students affected by the school’s actions. The Court appointed a Special Officer, Deputy S.G.I., to investigate and compile a list of bona fide Class X students at the school.
The Court stated that the Special Officer will visit the school on 15-09-2023, at 5 P.M., and the school authorities must cooperate fully by providing all relevant records. The counsel for the Board will accompany the Special Officer during this visit.
The Court directed the school authorities to pay the Special Officer an initial remuneration of Rs. 80,000 on or before 14-09-2023. The Court directed the principal and all school authorities involved in managing the school’s affairs to personally appear before the Court on the adjourned date. The matter would be further considered on 21-09-2023, at 10:30 A.M.
[Swarup Poddar v. Council for the Indian School Certificate Examinations, 2023 SCC OnLine Cal 2767, order dated 13-09-2023]
Advocates who appeared in this case :
Mr. Kalyan Kumar Bandopadhyay, Ld. Sr. Adv., Mrs. Promiti Bandopadhyay, Mr. Rahul Kumar Singh, Counsel for the Petitioners
Mr. Sanjay Kr. Baid and Mr. Samir Kumar Choudhury, Counsel for the Respondents
