In a significant judgment, the Allahabad High Court has quashed a school’s decision to deny admission to a girl student on the basis of her estimated age in the medical report despite valid official documents. The Court emphasized that educational institutions should rely on birth certificates issued under the statutory framework and not merely medical ones. Especially when such evaluations are based only on guesswork. The High Court termed the school’s action of denying admission as completely unfair and arbitrary.
This order has been given by the division bench of Chief Justice Arun Bhansali and Justice Vikas Wednesday while hearing the appeal of the witness. According to the facts of the case, petitioner Sakshi had sought admission in class six in Jawahar Navodaya Vidyalaya Jagdishpur Gaura Sant Kabirnagar for the academic session 2022-23. His date of birth is recorded as 25 January 2011 in his birth certificate, Aadhar card and vaccination records. After successfully securing a place in the merit list of the school, he was given admission in the institute.
The school principal suspected that Sakshi was above the acceptable age limit so she sent her to the Chief Medical Officer for an age determination test. The medical report concluded that he was over 15 years of age, which was two years above the maximum age limit for admission. On the basis of this report the school refused to admit him. On this the witness petitioned the High Court. The single bench rejected the petition on March 12. Sakshi filed a special appeal against the order of the single bench.
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Questioning the medical assessment of the school, the division bench said that the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act 2009 clearly states that age should be determined on the basis of official birth records. In this case, the birth certificate of the appellant and other supporting documents issued from the Gram Panchayat were genuine and confirmed his date of birth as 25 January 2011.
