Taking cognisance of an appeal by a group of Mumbai University (MU) students who have been trying to get hard copies of their mark sheets for the last three years, Governor Ch. Vidyasagar Rao has directed MU to look into the matter and take appropriate action. Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s office has also forwarded the students’ plea to the higher education department.
The group of 10 students, who were undergoing a diploma course in Intellectual Property Rights, appeared for their exams in 2015. After getting ATKTs, they were asked to apply for re-evaluation, which they did, after which they cleared the pending subjects.
“We submitted the necessary documents and fees to the administration and received an online statement of our results within two months, in which we had passed. The college also issued a statement certifying that we had passed in our re-evaluation. However, three years down the line, we still do not have our mark sheets,” Nikita Lulla, one of the students, said.
Ms. Lulla added that when they went to the MU administration to seek hard copies of their mark sheets, they were told that diploma students are not even eligible for re-evaluation. “We asked the administration why re-evaluation fees were accepted if that was the case, and were not given any explanation.”
Since then, the students have been running from pillar to post, approaching various MU and State government officials, including the registrar and vice-chancellor, Higher Education Minister, the Governor, Chief Minister, the Human Rights Commission and the Lokayukta. Finally, on February 27 this year, the Governor's office issued a letter to MU, asking concerned officials to look into the matter.
Dhanpal Solanki Jain, one of the 10 students still waiting for his mark sheet, said he has also received a response from the CM’s office, which states: “We have forwarded your request to the Higher and Technical Education Department so that necessary steps can be taken as soon as possible.”
When contacted, Dr. Rashmi Oza, head of the law department, said the matter has been communicated to the Board of Examination and a response is awaited. The board is likely to hold a meeting regarding the same. Mr. Jain said, “I was shocked to find out that I have an ATKT in my final exams. I immediately approached our then Head of Law Department, Ashok Yende, who advised me to apply for re-evaluation. I submitted re-evaluation fees, the form and other required documents to the administration and they accepted it.”
He added, “Within two months, I received an online statement of my marks and approached the university for a hard copy. But I was told that we are not eligible for the re-evaluation process and the administration had no further answers to any of our questions. Since then, I have approached every possible authority. I have even submitted a printout of my online statement of marks but the university remains silent. It is affecting our careers. We have no evidence of our performance.” Dr. Arjun Ghatule, Director, Board of Examinations could not be reached for comment.
