Supreme Court rejects PIL on common curriculum

New Delhi, February 11

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to entertain a PIL challenging certain provisions of the Right to Education Act, 2009, that excluded madrassas and vedic pathshalas from its ambit.

Petitioner Ashwini Kumar Upadhyay had challenged Sections 1 (4) and 1 (5) of the RTE Act for being “arbitrary and irrational”. He had sought introduction of a common syllabus and curriculum for children across the country, saying the absence of a common curriculum in the mother language led to the fostering and perpetuation of ignorance.

A Bench led by Justice L Nageswara Rao and BR Gavai, however, refused to entertain the PIL and asked Upadhyay to approach the high court. “Why don’t you go to the high court? You have come after 12 years of the amendment,” the Bench asked senior advocate Ranjit Kumar who represented Upadhyay.