Right to Education example of affirmative action that transformed lives: Ex-CJI U U Lalit
New Delhi (PTI): Former Chief Justice of India U U Lalit said the Right to Education, which has become a fundamental right, is an example of affirmative action that transformed the lives of citizens.
Speaking at an event on Saturday marking the release of the 100th episode of Rajya Sabha MP and senior advocate Kapil Sibal's online show 'Dil Se With Kapil Sibal', the former CJI commended Right to Education for its inclusive character.
"When we gained Independence, less than 18 per cent of the people of the country were literate. So the rate of literacy, which was just about 18 per cent, today stands ... at least 80 per cent; and this began with the Constitution," he said.
Lalit said the framers of the Constitution had two ideas: the first being the State, to the best of its ability within its economic capacity, was to extend to every citizen opportunities for improving education, and another was that the State shall endeavour to extend free and compulsory education to children below the age of 14 years.
In the Mohini Jain versus State of Karnataka case of 1992, that dealt with high capitation fees of a private medical institute, the top court held that right to education was an essential aspect of fundamental rights, he said.
Following this, the government introduced a bill in 1997 to make education a fundamental right of citizens till they attained the age of 14, the former CJI said.
"This, to my mind, is the solitary example where the judicature and the legislature played their role together. Otherwise, right from the First Amendment of the Constitution, there has always been a tussle between them," he added.
Lalit said the new government that assumed office in 1999 inserted Article 21A in the Constitution in 2002, making Right to Education a fundamental right for children in the age group of six to 14 years.
The Article said that every child in the age group of 6-14 would have the right to have complete and compulsory education in the manner determined by Parliament, he said. "Now that determination by Parliament comes only in 2009 by way of what is called the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act."
He said the Act was significant, having far-reaching consequences as it now included within its ambit private institutions and envisaged "an inclusive definition of education."
The former CJI said that after the Supreme Court's verdict of 1992, which was upheld by a larger bench in 1993, people benefited from the "affirmative action". "And that is why, according to me... it is singularly the most impactful decision by the Supreme Court."
"We keep hearing criticism that judges indulge in activism. Then this activism is at the highest level, where by interpretative process, you are now saying that hundreds of crores of the population are entitled to affirmative action, and yet there is not a single demur from any establishment," the former CJI said.
Sibal, in his address, underlined that information was at the heart of civilisational progress and that access to relevant data was a problem around the world.
"A society without information will be parched. Indeed, there will be no fertile ground for the grass to grow. And what ultimately, if you look at the march of civilisation, you realise it is all based on information.
"In the absence of information, there is no dialogue. In the absence of information, there is no progress. So information is at the heart of the progress of civilisation. Unfortunately, all those who block information are doing great injustice," Sibal said.
He said that unfortunately, solutions are scarce in the absence of access to data.
"So it is time for us to think about these issues. Because in the ultimate analysis, it is not about us, it is about our future; not even our future but the future of humanity," Sibal said.
Lalit released the 100th episode of the series, which was followed by a panel discussion between Sibal, former Supreme Court judge Justice Abhay S Oka, and film director-producer Mahesh Bhatt.
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Junior Hockey World Cup: IndiGo crisis disrupts travel plans of players' families, fans
Chennai (PTI): For Kate, the dream was simple -- to watch her son Fahy Noah play for the Australian team in the Junior Hockey World Cup here and visit the Taj Mahal.
But her plans, like those of many others, have been upended by the operational crisis that has hit IndiGo, India's largest domestic airline.
"I am here for the first time and India is so kind and welcoming. We were hoping to see the Taj Mahal, but with the IndiGo problems, we are a bit scared now," Kate, who has come from Brisbane, told PTI outside the Mayor Radhakrishnan Hockey Stadium here.
"One family went on a rest day and got stuck overnight. I think we will have to cancel all our travel plans now, though seeing the Taj Mahal was on my bucket list for long," she said.
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This is the first time that 24 teams are participating in the Junior Hockey World Cup, being held in Chennai and Madurai from November 28 to December 10. For most players and their families, it is their maiden trip to India. Many NRIs have also flown in to support the Indian team.
However, the widespread flight delays and cancellations have thrown schedules into chaos. IndiGo cancelled thousands of flights last week, citing regulatory changes in the pilots' flight duty and regulations norms. This resulted in lakhs of passengers getting stuck at airports across the country.
Laura, who has come from Belgium with her entire family to support her son, said they are now travelling by road.
"We are happy to be here in this beautiful country. We went to Munnar and Madurai, and now we are planning to go to Puducherry and Mahabalipuram by road," she said.
"We had taken IndiGo flights earlier, but some other families who travelled on different days got stuck and somehow managed to come back by train. So we are not flying anywhere in India now. Road travel only and then back to Brussels next week," she said.
For 87-year-old Kenyan hockey legend Avtar Singh Sohal, a four-time Olympian and a lifelong supporter of Indian hockey, the crisis was particularly distressing. He spent 12 gruelling hours at the Chandigarh airport on December 4 before finally reaching Chennai just in time for the quarterfinals.
"Our IndiGo flight was delayed by 12 hours. We were at the airport from 7 am to 7 pm. They kept giving excuses -- the aircraft has not arrived, the pilot is not available. We had no idea what was actually happening," he said.
Accompanying Sohal was 85-year-old Tarlok Singh Mandair, a former treasurer of the English Hockey Association, who had flown in from London.
"It was a horrible experience. They kept changing the timings from 12 noon to 4 pm and we finally took off at 7:20 pm. They gave us sandwiches which were not even good," Mandair recalled.
"Our return flight is also on IndiGo, but now we are exploring other options," he said.
Jujhar Singh Plaha, 86, from London, who was on the same flight, said his excitement has turned into anxiety.
"We were so excited about this trip; hockey is our first love. But this (IndiGo crisis) spoiled our mood. Now we are worried about returning because at our age, we cannot travel long distances by train or road," he said.
Jason, the father of Australian player Roger Lachlan, has had an eventful trip to India so far -- beginning with the rain in Chennai triggered by Cyclone Ditwah.
"We are from Hobart -- home of Ricky Ponting and David Boon. We arrived after a cyclone, which caused heavy rain. Now the sun is out and we are enjoying ourselves," he said with a smile.
Jason, too, has shelved all further travel plans.
"No sightseeing now. We will just eat, swim and head back. I am loving masala dosa, masala tea and curries," he said.
Some fans from Bengaluru, who had booked their flight tickets months in advance, decided not to take a risk. They opted for refunds and drove down to Chennai on Sunday to catch the semifinal.
"With flight uncertainty and trains full, we drove down. We did not want to miss India in the semis," said Vinod Chinnappa, who drove for six hours to come here.
Even officials have not been spared by the flight disruptions.
Digvijay Singh, an official of the Hockey India League franchise, waited eight hours at the Patna airport to catch a flight to Chennai.
"I did not want to miss the India-Belgium quarterfinal, so I waited. I finished all episodes of (web series) Family Man at the lounge," he said.
"I had gone to Patna from Delhi for a meeting earlier in the day and then needed to connect to Chennai," Singh said.
With the World Cup set to wrap up in two days, uncertainty about people's plans to return home looms large.
With prices of alternative flights rising and train seats nearly impossible to find, fans, officials, families and journalists are monitoring travel apps as closely as match updates.
If the situation does not improve soon, returning home could be as challenging as winning matches on the field.
