SUPREME COURT JUDGMENT ON RIGHT TO PROFESSIONAL EDUCATION
The Honorable Supreme Court of India in a recent judgment has very well settled a proposition of law regarding right to Professional education of every citizen. The matter came before the Honorable Supreme Court in Farzana Batool v/s Union of India. The Apex court clarified that, though Right to Professional education is not a fundamental right but it does not mean that State has no affirmative role to play in facilitating access to higher education at all levels. The pronouncement of this judgment will go a long way in enabling those students who by virtue of their geographical location are unable to get quality higher education.
The Honorable Apex Court further held that State’s obligation to provide technical and professional education to every citizen arises from the fact of India’s ratifying International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights in 1979 and the persuasive force attached to Article 26(1) of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights which casts a duty on every State to ensure that technical and professional education is made generally available to all on the basis of merit. The Hon’ble Apex Court further clarified that financial considerations or hardships should not come in the way of students in getting admission to professional courses in which allocation has been made in their favor under the central pool seats.
