Plea Filed Before Kerala High Court Against State's Decision To Not Grant Grace Marks In State Board Exams

A student has approached the Kerala High Court challenging the State government's decision not to allot grace marks to 10th and 12th class students in State Board Examinations.

Grace marks are awarded for extracurricular achievements such as Scouts and Guides, Student Police Cadet, National Cadet Corps, Junior Red Cross, State Youth Festival, National Science Fair, Sports and National Service Scheme.

The Directorate of General Education had earlier issued a letter dated 29th June 2021 declaring its decision to not award grace marks to students appearing for State Board Examinations, considering that the schools had remained closed in the academic year owing to the pandemic.

The petitioner was in the Scouts and Guides Division and had received the Rajya Puraskar 2021 award with 114 other students, which entitles him to a grace mark of 25. He has completed his Grade 10 examinations and is awaiting results, which are due to be published by mid-July. Hence, the petition was filed, through Advocate Manas P Hameed.

According to the petition, the SPC, NCC, JRC, and the Scouts and Guides had helped the authorities contain the pandemic. The petitioner submitted that they had played a crucial role in providing services to the needy during the lockdown in the wake of the national crisis that followed the outbreak of Covid-19. 

It is submitted in the petition that the students of the aforementioned organizations distributed cooked meals, dry rations, sanitizers, masks, and hand wash to the helpless. They also conducted several mass awareness campaigns regarding wearing face masks and maintaining social distancing, and blood donations camps amidst the pandemic, it read.

The students in these organizations were reportedly involved in actively sensitizing the public with necessary and appropriate information through social media platforms and active fieldwork. The petition further lists out a list of activities that the students have diligently participated in throughout the academic year and attached photographs of the same as evidence. 

"Hence, the decision of the government is arbitrary and unsustainable for the reason that the said disciplined voluntary organizations conducted several programmes amidst the pandemic," the petitioner asserted.

It is claimed that the impugned decision is frowned upon by many student organisations as well as teachers and representations have been filed objecting to the same.

The Petitioner as therefore prayed that expeditious steps be taken to award grace marks to the deserving students in the State Board examinations. The petitioner also sought a directive to the state government to consider all the representations and complaints against the decision.

A declaration to the effect that students who have participated in Scouts and Guides, Student Police Cadet, National Cadet Corps, Junior Red Cross, and National Service Scheme cannot be deprived of grace marks in SSLC or Plus Two since they have actively participated in COVID prevention works during 2020-21 was also sought for. 

Case Title: (Minor) vs. Department of General Education & Ors