Giving a fair chance to all parents seeking benefit of the interstate transfer (IST) category for nursery admissions in the Capital, the Supreme Court on Friday allowed all IST applicants who had yet not approached Supreme Court to join as parties in the case to be taken up on Monday.
The IST category students were left in the lurch after the Delhi Government scrapped the IST quota altogether midway through the admission process. The apex court which found it discriminatory on part of the lieutenant-Governor to change the rules after the game begun had sought an opinion last Monday on whether the IST students who qualified in the draw of lots with 70 out of 100 points could be accommodated as a one-time measure this year. For this, the l-G was asked to consult private schools and allow an increase of five seats per school.
Senior advocate Raju Ramachandran appearing for l-G did not offer any proposal on these lines but indicated to the court that the beneficiaries under IST being a minority, not more than 25 seats, after the first round of admissions are over, they may be adjusted against the remaining available seats.
The bench of Justices Hl Dattu, MY Eqbal and SA Bobde snubbed the offer. It said, “let them get it as a matter of right. We need not show charity to them.” Ramachandran then proposed that an order could be passed asking schools to earmark the seats for the petitioners to be allotted to them subject to further verification. He said that close to 800 applications out of 1,500 odd applications received under IST pool were fake and in order to plug this loophole, the Government decided to scrap the entire lot.
Wishing to pass an order on the modified proposal orally submitted by l-G counsel, the bench told Ramachandran, “That you have made clear in your notification. In the event of slightest doubt, reject the application. But in the name of that do not carry in your mind that all persons who claim admission will be deleted.”
Senior advocate Nidhesh Gupta who appeared for the IST parents informed the court that while only 25 people had approached court, there were some who are party before Delhi HC awaiting decision of the apex court. The court said, “We will not pass a general and omnibus order,” indicating that relief will be restricted only to persons who have approached court. Gupta was given time to include all beneficiaries as parties till Friday and posted the matter for orders on Monday.