Supreme Court to Hear Challenge Against CBSE's Three-Language Formula

A plea by educationist Fauzia Khan challenges CBSE's policy enforcing a three-language system for Class 9, citing it as unreasonable and inconsistent with the NEP 2020. The Supreme Court has issued a notice regarding the language policy's potential impact on non-Hindi-speaking regions.

In a significant legal development, the Supreme Court of India has been approached with a new plea challenging the Central Board of Secondary Education's (CBSE) controversial three-language policy for Class 9 students set to be enforced starting July. The petition, filed by educationist and former Maharashtra minister Fauzia Khan, argues that the language policy is both arbitrary and unreasonable, undermining the principles of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020.

This challenge stems from a CBSE circular dated May 15, which mandates that students from Class 9 onwards study three languages, two of which must be Indian. Khan, representing the NCP-SCP party, highlights the policy's impracticality, pointing to the acknowledged shortage of qualified language teachers, while also raising concerns about forcing non-Hindi-speaking states to incorporate Hindi or Sanskrit, without substantial educational rationale.

The apex court had already issued a notice on May 27 in response to the objections regarding the policy, which compels southern schools to introduce Hindi and northern institutions to offer Sanskrit. Additionally, while students may choose to learn a foreign language, they must first fulfill the requirement of studying two Indian languages, or they could take a foreign language as a fourth option. This policy shift is part of CBSE's efforts to align with both the NEP 2020 and the National Curriculum Framework for School Education 2023. (ANI)