Jammu and Kashmir’s political parties on December 15 accused the Lieutenant Governor’s (L-G) administration of denying hundreds of students the chance to appear for the Class 10 board examination in Kashmir.
These parties alleged that the Jammu and Kashmir Board of School Education rejected Class 10 examination forms from students enrolled in private schools situated on State land.
“Deeply troubled by the Board’s refusal to accept Class 10th exam forms from students in private schools established on state land. Disregarding a High Court stay order raises serious questions about fairness and their motives. It seems intentional to jeopardize the future of countless students,” Peoples Democratic Party president and former J&K Chief Minister Mehbooba Mufti said.
She urged the L-G administration to intervene and ensure that the academic aspirations of the affected students are not compromised.
At least 155 private schools, with an enrollment of over one lakh students, were identified by the Revenue Department in 2022 as structures “built on land other than private property in the Union Territory (UT)“. Hundreds of private schools in Kashmir have functioned from different titles of land like Shamilat-e-Deh land, Kahcharie land, State land, Ahle Islam land and Masjid land for many decades now.
National Conference spokesperson Imran Nabi Dar, while denouncing the move, said, “The unjust move has sparked concerns and raised questions about the Board’s actions, which are in defiance of a High Court order issued last year in reference to the government directive from the previous year.”
The NC impressed upon the LG administration to intervene and resolve the matter in the best interests of the students.
CPI(M) leader M.Y. Tarigami said the decision of the Board “is flagrant disregard for the High Court’s stay order”. “The decision is bound to put the future of thousands of students on the line,” he added.
J&K Apni Party president Altaf Bukhari also voiced his strong resentment over the issue. “The future of approximately two lakh students enrolled in private educational institutions established on State land hangs in the balance. Jeopardizing the academic prospects of such a significant number of students is an untenable situation,” he said.
In 2022, the J&K High Court stayed the earlier government order and directed the Chief Education Officers (CEOs) in the Valley’s 10 districts to issue orders for “closing the schools operating on state or kahcharai land”.
“The students in such institutions shall be accommodated in nearby government schools, subject to the consent of their parents,” the order, to be implemented within 15 days, said.
On April 15, 2022, the Lieutenant Governor administration added two sub-rules to the existing Jammu and Kashmir School Education Rules, 2010, which lays down the procedure for registration of private schools. The Sub Rule (2) (A) and Sub Rule (2) (B) asked the schools to obtain a ‘No Objection Certificate’ regarding the land use and lease period from the Revenue Department.
However, the administration of these schools claimed that the government at no stage objected to the setting up of these schools, “which have been in operation for the last several years”.
