Persons occupying high posts should show some restraint, Chief Justice of the High Court of Karnataka observed orally on Thursday during the hearing of the PIL petition filed by a group of parents questioning the laws that make the study of Kannada language compulsory even for students studying in schools affiliated to the CBSE and CISCE.
However, Chief Justice Prasanna B. Varale did not refer the name of any person holding high posts.
The oral observations were made when the Chief Justice, who was heading a Division Bench also consisting of Justice Krishna S. Dixit, was hearing the petition.
CM’s remark
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, in his speech on Rajyotsava Day on Wednesday, had said: ”The medium of instruction should be in Kannada and several efforts have been made in this regard. Courts are also not cooperating with our efforts and have said that the decision on medium is with the parents...”
Chief Justice observed orally: “There is some valid point that somebody who takes education in the regional language and in the State language is not to be treated as incompetent. He can also be very successful. At least for myself, I can say, I learnt in the regional language, it was never a hurdle for me. These are the issues and we have to consider the legal aspects of it. At the same time, persons who are occupying high posts should show some restraint.”
Though notice on the petition was issued to the government in August, the court in September had asked the petitioners to provide details of their wards and details of the schools in which they are studying and the course pursued by them.
On Thursday, counsel for the petitioner-parents submitted names of children, except four of them, in a sealed cover to the court and claimed that the parents were against making names of their children and institute public in the petition as there were some instances where the some children had faced persecution in their schools.
Unjustified apprehension
However, the Bench told the counsel that it was unjustified apprehension of the parents that the children would be persecuted as they were not the first parents to challenge such an issue in the court and there have been similar cases in other States as well.
“If the children are so delicate, how will they face life in future? The parents are making their children timid. There are so many challenges in life, so many adversities in life, life may be very cruel. Life may test everything, your patience, skill, experience,” the Bench observed orally.
The petitioners questioned the Constitutional validity of the provisions of the Kannada Language Learning (KLL) Act, 2015, the KLL Rules, 2017, and the Karnataka Educational Institutions (Issue of No Objection Certificate and Control) Rules, 2022, through which the government has imposed study of Kannada as a compulsory language from classes I to X for all schools, including CBSE and CISCE.
