New Delhi: The Supreme Court has directed the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to give Class 6 students the same exemption from the mandatory
three-language policy that was earlier granted to students of Class 7.
The court said the policy should be implemented for the current Class 6 batch from April 1, 2027. The direction came during a hearing on petitions challenging the implementation of the third-language requirement in CBSE schools.
The Centre had told the court that it was not willing to exempt Class 6 students from the policy for the current academic year. The government said around 99 per cent of CBSE schools had already adopted the third-language policy and had the required facilities.
According to the Centre, only about 1.2 per cent of schools were affected by the change.
Court seeks same relief for Class 6 students
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told the bench that the government had held detailed discussions but was not inclined to provide an exemption to Class 6 students this year.
“We had detailed discussions. We are not inclined to exempt Class 6 from this year onwards. They should pursue it from this year itself,” he said.
The Supreme Court, however, took a different view and said students currently studying in Class 6 should be given the same “comfort” as the Class 7 batch.
The Solicitor General of India has submitted that about 99 per cent of the schools have adopted the third-language policy and have been provided the necessary facilities, and only about 1.2 per cent of the schools have not.
“In light of this, we direct that students of Class 6, like the students of Class 7, may be granted the same exemption as has been granted to students of Class 7,” the order stated.
The larger issue surrounding the mandatory language requirement will be examined separately by the court.
Parents raise concerns over sudden change
During the hearing, the bench also discussed the difficulties faced by students who had already been studying a particular language for several years.
CJI Surya Kant suggested that a committee of senior officials could meet the petitioner schools and understand their concerns.
“Why don’t you do one thing? Appoint a committee of very responsible senior officers. Let the committee reach out to these petitioner schools, or the petitioners, and find out the issues,” he said.
Senior Advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan, representing the parents, opposed the proposal and said the matter needed a clear decision.
“We don’t think we should have any more committees because that does not help. A committee does not help at all. Let there be a decision one way or the other,” he said.
He said some students had been studying their chosen languages since Class 4 and were now being asked to change them.
Textbook availability also questioned
Parents also raised concerns about the availability of textbooks under the new language framework.
Sankaranarayanan cited the example of students at DPS who had been studying Spanish since Class 4. According to him, six sections, each with around 50 students, had been studying Spanish before being shifted to Sanskrit.
“We are not going into the merits of Sanskrit versus Spanish or German. The point is that even the NEP says that a language will not be imposed. It has to be consistent with the constitutional provisions,” he said.
He also questioned the classification of English as a non-native language, pointing to its use in constitutional and court proceedings.
The court said its concern was to ensure that students did not face unnecessary difficulty because of the transition.
Justice Joymalya Bagchi said, “That is what we don’t want. We want comfort, not difficulty. We do not want to keep challenging them.”
The matter has been listed after six weeks. The Centre has been asked to file its counter-affidavit within four weeks, with the petitioners allowed two weeks thereafter to file their rejoinder.
