The Bombay High Court has quashed SSC Board's decision to ban a student from appearing in SSC examination in September/October this year for writing her seat number on answer sheet by mistake instead of on question paper during civics-history exams in March.
Hearing a petition filed by 14-year-old Vani Umesh Deshpande through her father, Justices G S Patel and A S Oka set aside the impugned order dated June 7, 2013, of the State Board of Secondary and Higher Secondary Education to the extent that it prohibited the student from appearing for the SSC examination till September/October 2013.
The judges directed the Board to reconsider the case of the student and take a suitable decision having regard to facts and circumstances of the case, written explanation given by the petitioner and the report of enquiry held in the case.
The judges held that it will be open to the Board's Kolhapur division to exercise its fullest discretion in the matter, including, if it thinks fit, confirming its decision of July 18 that the petitioner repeats the entire SSC examination in September/October 2013.
It can also decide to revise that decision by declaring the petitioner's result at the May, 2013 SSC examination in full or in part or requiring the petitioner to repeat only the examination in History/Civics.
The court ordered the SSC Board to communicate its final decision to the petitioner and her advocate within two weeks from the date of this order (July 22).
The matter has been posted for August 6 under the caption "directions" for reporting compliance.
The issue raised in the petition was whether the penalties prescribed for examination hall malpractices are only the maximum that may be imposed, or whether in exceptional cases, having regard to manifest extenuating and mitigating circumstances, the respondents have the discretion to award a lesser penalty.
