HC not satisfied with report on infrastructure in govt schools in Karnataka
Bengaluru, June 22: The High Court of Karnataka has expressed its displeasure over the government's inaction in providing infrastructure, including toilets in state-run schools in accordance with the norms of the Right to Education Act (RTE).
The court observed that parents would hesitate to send their children to government schools in this situation.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Prasanna B Varale and Justice MJS Kamal, which heard the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) on its own based on media reports about school dropouts, said its conscience is pricked at the plight of the schools.
After examining the report and photographs submitted by the government, the bench found that the condition of toilets in the schools was very pathetic. The area around the school toilets were overgrown with shrubs. The bench questioned whether it was the same in the homes of the officers who had submitted such a report.
What kind of society is expected to be developed if the basic necessities in schools aren't available? the HC asked.
Justice MGS Kamal sought to know if the officers who filed the report would send their children to such schools. It said the officers seem to have a 'chalta hai' attitude.
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Noting that the hearing of the PIL was going on since 2013, the court said there seems to be no change on the ground and it was pained at the situation. The future of the country was in danger because of the situation in government schools.
The government advocate informed the court that the infrastructure in schools was provided as per the available government grants. Not satisfied with this submission, the bench said that budgetary grants to education should be reserved for this purpose and should be mandated to be spent within a timeframe.
The HC directed that a fresh survey of government schools should be held in the next three months and member secretaries of the District Legal Service Authorities should be part of this.
It also directed that in the next hearing of the PIL the report submitted by the government should be mandatorily countersigned by the Legal Service Authority officers. These directions should be brought to the notice of the Chief Secretary of the State and the Principal Secretary of the Education Department, the court said and adjourned the case.
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BJP's Suvendu urges Bengal Guv to order independent judicial inquiry into Messi event fiasco
Kolkata(PTI): Leader of Opposition in West Bengal assembly, Suvendu Adhikari, on Saturday wrote to Governor C V Ananda Bose, seeking an independent judicial inquiry into “administrative incompetence” and “public humiliation of citizens”at the Salt Lake Stadium here during an event featuring football legend Lionel Messi.
In his letter, Adhikari alleged that the stadium, built with public funds, was converted into a “private durbar” for political elites, resulting in humiliation and harassment of spectators who had purchased tickets.
"I write this communication with a profound sense of anguish, constitutional alarm, and moral urgency. What unfolded at the Yuva Bharati Krirangan was not merely an episode of administrative incompetence, it was a public humiliation of citizens, a grotesque exhibition of unrestrained political privilege, and a direct assault on the rule of law in the presence of thousands of witnesses," Adhikari asserted.
He claimed that football fans were denied basic amenities and dignified viewing due to unchecked VIP presence, obstruction of sightlines, and arbitrary restrictions.
Chaos unfolded at the Salt Lake Stadium on Saturday, after spectators resorted to vandalism on failing to catch a glimpse of Messi, alleging gross mismanagement by the organisers and obstruction of views by VIPs.
Police arrested the event’s prime organiser, Satadru Datta, while Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee announced the constitution of a high-level inquiry committee to probe the incident.
Adhikari, in his letter, held the sports department, police authorities and the minister-in-charge of sports and youth affairs responsible, alleging that the situation was “enabled, if not orchestrated”, by the state administration.
He claimed that the conduct of the authorities reflected indifference to public accountability and misuse of power.
The senior BJP leader also took exception to the inquiry committee announced by the chief minister, contending that it lacked independence and credibility.
Adhikari said the panel is headed by Justice (Retd) Asim Ray, who currently holds a statutory post under the administrative control of the state government, and includes senior bureaucrats whose actions are under scrutiny.
"This committee is structurally compromised, legally infirm, and morally indefensible," he said in the letter to the governor.
Adhikari urged Bose to exercise his constitutional authority to order the formation of a truly independent inquiry committee.
He proposed that the committee be headed by a sitting judge of the Calcutta High Court, and assisted by persons of unimpeachable integrity with no institutional, administrative or political affiliation with the state government.
“The issue transcends football, politics, and personalities. It concerns the right of citizens to be treated with dignity, the obligation of the state to act as trustee of public interest, and the duty of constitutional authorities to intervene when the executive becomes a law unto itself,” Adhikari said.
Later, speaking to reporters, he accused the state government of mismanaging the situation at Salt Lake Stadium, and demanded the resignation of the CM.
Adhikari said all those responsible for the fiasco should be arrested, and spectators must be provided refunds.
He alleged that senior Trinamool Congress leaders and their associates crowded around Messi, leaving thousands of fans at the stadium deprived of catching a clear glimpse of the football star.
“This was a case of misuse of power at the cost of ordinary citizens. The chief minister must take moral responsibility, those responsible for the incident should be arrested, and every fan who was cheated must get a refund,” Adhikari asserted.
He added that public anger would not subside without accountability and corrective action.
