[Breaking] 809 students move letter plea urging Supreme Court to take suo motu cognizance of CBSE decision to conduct compartment exam

809 students from across India have filed a letter petition urging Chief Justice of India SA Bobde and other judges of the Supreme Court to take suo motu cognisance of the decision of the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to conduct compartment exams amid the COVID-19 crisis. .A compartment exam is conducted for students who could not pass in one or two subjects in Class X or XII board exams. The CBSE gives three chances to such students to clear the compartment exam..The letter filed by Sandeep Saurav, National General Secretary of the All India Students Association, on behalf of the 809 students, states that there while there is no update on the schedule of the compartment examination, most colleges have given examination deadlines.The letter petition further avers that this decision of CBSE "exposes students/parents/teachers and staff to a lot of risk in view of exponential growth of the virus in the country.".The letter petition states that after CBSE declared its results, 1,50,198 students from Class X and 87,651 students from Class XII were required to write compartment exams.Aggrieved by this, a plea was moved in the Apex Court. By an order dated July 31, the Court stated that representation needs to be made to CBSE within a week and that a decision would be taken as per law. However, even after informing CBSE, the applicant avers that the Board stated that it would go ahead with the compartment exam. .The letter petition states that offline examination is not possible during the pandemic, as schools have been converted into quarantine centres."The decision of the CBSE is against the MHA Unlock III guideline dated 29.07.2020, which provides that the schools, colleges and educational institutions will remain closed.".The statement of the Union Minister of Higher Education that there is no date fixed for reopening schools is also cited."How can the students be then expected to appear for compartment examination in the current situation? The students are not contending the importance of exams but are seeking the appropriate direction of this Hon’ble Court only in this pandemic situation," reads the letter petition. .The plea further notes that states like Bihar and Telangana have already cancelled the compartment examinations. .Thus, the applicants pray that the Court take suo motu cognisance of the matter and keep the decision of CBSE to conduct compartment exams in abeyance until the pandemic situation normalizes. .(Read related articles).Plea in SC seeks adoption of CBSE's re-assessment option for failed 9th and 11th standard students of ICSE board amid COVID-19.How will Class X and XII students be assessed this year in lieu of Board exams? Read details of the CBSE Assessment Scheme