Shivangi Prakash-
In light of the cancellation of board exams due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Delhi High Court on Wednesday asked the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to consider whether or not fees paid for board exams should be refunded.
The order was issued in response to a petition filed by a parent of a class 12 student who claimed that the sum paid for the conduct of CBSE board exams for class 12 students should be refunded because the examinations were cancelled.
The decision on the whole or partial return of exam fees for classes 10 and 12, which were cancelled following the second wave of Covid-19 in the country, will be made within eight weeks.
The Court also stated that if the petitioner is unhappy with the CBSE’s judgement on her representation, she may file a new writ case with the Delhi High Court.
During the hearing, however, Justice Prateek Jalan admitted that even if the exams are cancelled, CBSE will incur some expenses. Nonetheless, the expenses involved would be significantly lower than usual.
“The substratum of fees you charged is gone since exams are cancelled. Of course, some proportion of the amount you will spend on assessments”, the Court remarked.
The CBSE stated that if it does not receive funds from the Centre at this time, it will be forced to rely on examination fees for the rest of the year. It was pointed out that the CBSE has to maintain infrastructure and undertake deliberations in addition to exam conduct. All of this is funded by exam fees, according to CBSE lawyers.
He went on to say that the CBSE would still have to administer exams for those students who choose to do so and that there would be no additional charge for this.
The dispute was eventually settled by the Court ordering CBSE to consider the petitioner’s representation and make a decision.
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