Maharashtra to move apex court over ‘best five’ verdict

MUMBAI - A day after the Bombay High Court rejected the ‘best five’ formula espoused by the Maharashtra government for admission to Class 11, Chief Minister Ashok Chavan said here Thursday that the verdict will be challenged before the Supreme Court.

The government will challenge the verdict which said that the ‘best five’ formula for Secondary School Certificate (SSC) Board students was discriminatory against students from other boards.

The chief minister announced the decision after a meeting of the cabinet here this afternoon.

With the government’s decision to challenge the high court verdict, the admission process for Class 11 - first year junior college - in Maharashtra may be put on hold for at least a fortnight.

The Maharashtra government came up with the ‘best five’ formula in February.

A government resolution said marks obtained in any five of the six subjects in Class 10 exams by an SSC student would be taken into account for admission to Class 11. An SSC pass-out, therefore, will be able to choose the five subjects in which he/she has excelled.

A division bench of the high court in its verdict on the formula questioned the resolution following several public interest litigations filed by aggrieved parents of children who passed out from the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) board, asking why the same facility is not available to students of other boards.