The functioning of Punjab School Education Board’s chairperson Tajinder Kaur has come under judicial scanner. The Punjab and Haryana High Court on Monday issued notice to State of Punjab and Tajinder Kaur, on a petition seeking her removal from the post for misusing powers in awarding excessive grace marks to the students for better results.
In his petition, filed in Public interest by Advocate H C Arora, the petitioner has stated that Tajinder Kaur misused her powers by giving excessive grace marks in Matriculation and Senior Secondary Examinations conducted by the Board in March, 2015, and March, 2016.
The petitioner contended that the Chairperson of PSEB committed a fraud on the education system by attempting to present a “highly inflated” pass percentage. He submitted that the endeavor was bound to bring disgrace not only to the Board, but also to the Punjab Government.
The petitioner elaborated that the students with just three to four marks were declared pass, due to grant of grace marks. Arora added the chairperson misused her powers dealing with “moderation of results”. It gave the chairperson the right to modify the results by exercising the power of moderation, in case the pass percentage during the current year appeared to be lower than the percentage in the previous years.
The petitioner also demanded that for the sake of transparency the grace marks given to students should be mentioned in the Detailed Marks Certificates. Taking up the petition, the Division Bench of Justice S.S. Saron and Justice lisa Gill has sought reply of the respondents includeing Tajinder Kaur by September 1.