NEW DELHI: The decision of the central government to introduce Sanskrit replacing German as a language in Kendriya Vidyalayas is likely to be contested before the Delhi high court.

While an NGO specializing in litigation on education-related issues is readying a PIL, the government’s move itself is an offshoot of another case pending before the court. Last month, a group of Sanskrit teachers had approached HC alleging that the KV schools introduced German as a third language in place of Sanskrit against the education policy.

In response to court notice, the human resource ministry gave an insight into its thinking by way of an affidavit. It claimed before court that there were “inconsistencies” in an MoU signed between Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan and Goethe Institute of Max Mueller Bhavan . The MoU governs training of Sanskrit teachers for German language.

The HRD ministry had said that it doesn’t agree with the MoU and has asked the KVS authorities to “reconsider” it in line with the three language formula enunciated by the National Policy on Education and subsequently the National Curriculum Framework 2005. Both stress that Sanskrit may be studied as a modern Indian language apart from Hindi and English, the HRD ministry had informed the court.

Delhi-based NGO Social Jurist, however, plans to take the issue to court in case HRD ministry does replace German with Sanskrit language in all KVS schools. Speaking to TOI, Social Jurist’s president, advocate Ashok Aggarwal said the proposed policy decision smacks of arbitrariness and is in fact detrimental to the welfare of students interested in studying German.

Aggarwal, who has been at the forefront of bringing in educational reforms by way of PILs—be it nursery admissions, fee structure of schools or implementation of the Right to Education Act—maintained the decision on language is liable to be struck down by courts as it is not just arbitrary but even discriminatory. “It will hamper the choice of students and violates Fundamental Rights. We see it as curbing of the right to choose of a student. It is against rules governing Kendriya Vidyalaya’s third language policy and even CBSE guidelines,” Aggarwal added.

Experts also question the need to limit the language choice of students when the national education policy itself stresses on holistic development of the child. Advocate Khagesh Jha, also associated with Social Jurist, pointed out that the policy will differentiate between KVS and private schools since the government’s diktat on Sanskrit can’t extend to the latter. “In private schools children can still study German, why not in KVS? It can’t be denied that for middle and lower income group parents, a foreign language holds great potential for their children in terms of jobs and higher education job prospects,” he argues. In any eventuality, the policy decision that is expected to affect over 70,000 students across 500 KVs from classes 6 to 8 appears set to land up before the courts.

