IN THE HIGH COURT OF JUDICATURE AT PATNA CWJC No.1285 of 2009 BISHWAJEET DUBEY Versus THE STATE OF BIHAR & ORS ----------- CWJC No.1938 of 2009 ASHOK KUMAR SINGH & ORS Versus THE STATE OF BIHAR & ORS ----------- 3. 17.02.2009 Heard leaned Counsels for the petitioners and the learned Counsel for the State of Bihar in both the writ applications. The petitioners claim to be student of the SDS Evening College, Newajitola at Chapra at the Intermediate level. It is their admission in the writ application that they were under the impression that the Institution has an approval and recognised by the Bihar School Examination Board. Only when the Board refused to accept their fees and forms for the Intermediate Examination for the Sessions 2007-2009 they have now discovered that the Institution in which they took admission does not have approval/recognition/affiliation from the Bihar School Examination Board. Their contention that their careers are at stake and they were not aware of the status of the Institution when they took admission and therefore the Court must have sympathy with them, does not appeal to this Court. Sympathy cannot supplant the law. The Supreme Court in the case of Sunil Oraon (Minor) through the Guardian and others Vrs C.B.S.E. & others (2006) 13 SCC 673 has emphasised the risk of grant of interim relief or permission to appear at the examination from those un- recognised Institutions and deprecated the misplaced sympathy in such matters holding at paragraph 23 and 24 as follows:- “23. Time and again, therefore, this Court had deprecated the practice of educational institutions admitting the students without requisite recognition or affiliation. In all such cases, the usual plea is the career of innocent children who have fallen in the hands of the mischievous designated school authorities. As the factual scenario delineated against goes to show that the school has shown scant regards to the requirements for affiliation and as rightly highlighted by learned counsel for CBSE, the infraction was of very serious nature. Though the ultimate victims are innocent students that cannot be a ground for granting relief to the appellant. Even after filing the undertakings the school nonchalantly continued the violations. 24. Students have suffered because of the objectionable conduct of the school. It shall be open to them to seek such remedy against the school as is available in law, about which aspect we express no opinion.”. However, the contention of the petitioners is that the Institution has been inspected on 31.5.2008 by the District Education Officer and who has made certain recommendations in favour of the Institution. The issue of affiliation/recognition is governed by the Bihar School Examination Board (Amendment) Act, 2007. If there is a recommendation by a statutory authority, the Board is naturally expected to act on it expeditiously and not sit over the matter defeating any consideration by sheer inaction. The writ application is therefore disposed with the direction to the respondent no. 3 to 6 to take expeditious decision on affiliation/recognition so that the interest of the petitioners is not allowed to be adversely affected by inaction on their part, preferably within a period of one month from the date of receipt and/or production of a copy of this order. This shall be without prejudice to the rights of the petitioners vis a vis respondent no. 7 in all its aspect of the civil and criminal law. Snkumar/- (Navin Sinha,J.)