The Madras High Court on Friday warned that it would be constrained to summon School Education secretaries of all States and Union Territories if they failed to respond as to whether they had banned home work for Class I and II students in compliance with a circular issued by the Centre in June as directed by the High Court on May 29.
Justice N. Kirubakaran issued the warning after Assistant Solicitor General G. Karthikeyan told the court that the Centre had implemented the court order by issuing a circular as well as a reminder to all State governments and Union Territory administrations, but they were not responding as to whether they had complied with it or not.
The judge also pulled up the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) for taking his order on appeal to a Division Bench of the High Court in the guise that the direction to private CBSE schools also to follow only the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) books was in conflict with a contrary order passed by Delhi High Court in another case.
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Stating that the CBSE could have challenged the Delhi High Court order and got it set aside if it was in favour of using books by private publishers in CBSE schools, the judge said that its keenness in challenging his order only showed “that there was a hidden agenda between CBSE and private publishers of school books.”
Since the Division Bench, before which the writ appeal was pending, had not granted any stay, the judge granted the CBSE time till Thursday to issue a circular asking all schools affiliated to it to desist from giving homework to Class I and II students and from teaching any subject other than language and mathematics.