The Delhi High Court has ruled that the Kendriya Vidyalaya Sangathan (KVS) cannot deny admission to a student under the economically weaker section (EWS) category based on the ground that the income certificate has been obtained from another state and not from the Delhi government. This decision comes as the court determined that the central government, which controls the KVS, is the appropriate authority for notifying the annual income threshold to determine EWS eligibility.
Justice Anup Jairam Bhambhani stated that the central government has specified that the income certificate, for the purpose of determining EWS status, should be issued by an officer of a certain rank in the state after careful verification of all relevant documents as per the process prescribed by the respective state governments. Therefore, it is not necessary for a candidate applying for admission to a Kendriya Vidyalaya (KV) school in any part of the country under the EWS category to provide a certificate issued from the state in which the school is located. Instead, the certificate should be furnished by an officer of the specified rank in the state where verification is possible.
The Delhi High Court also noted that the central government has set the gross annual family income threshold for the EWS category at below ₹8 lakh. In light of this, the court ruled that the rejection of the petitioner’s ward for admission by the KVS on the basis that the EWS certificate was obtained from the state of Uttar Pradesh and not from the Government of NCT Delhi is untenable.
The court’s decision came in response to a petition filed by a man seeking direction for the KVS in the Delhi region to grant admission to his son in a Kendriya Vidyalaya in the national capital under the EWS category. The court quashed the communication issued by the authorities on January 3, 2022, which had declined admission. As a result of the prolonged litigation, the court ordered the admission of the petitioner’s son to class 3.
The petitioner, who hails from Azamgarh in Uttar Pradesh, initially applied for his son’s admission in class 1 under the EWS category. He stated that he had moved to Delhi for employment purposes and desired his son to be enrolled in a Kendriya Vidyalaya in the national capital. The EWS certificate was issued to him by a tehsildar in Azamgarh.
The KVS argued that apart from the income and EWS certificate from Uttar Pradesh, the petitioner’s son was denied admission due to other irregularities in the application. However, the court found in favor of the petitioner, emphasizing that the ward had been denied admission despite the initial allotment made for the academic session 2021-2022 in class 1. Therefore, the court directed the KVS to grant regular admission to the petitioner’s son in Kendriya Vidyalaya, Narela for the academic session 2023-2024 in class 3.
This verdict by the Delhi High Court clarifies the admission process under the EWS category in Kendriya Vidyalayas, providing relief to students and parents seeking admission from other states. The ruling ensures that the issuance of income certificates by a designated officer in the respective state holds validity across the country for EWS admissions, irrespective of whether it was obtained from the state in which the school is located or not.
