The Karnataka High Court issued a notice to the state government, asking it to respond to a petition challenging the ban on online classes for students up to Class 5.
Though the court did not grant any interim relief, the bench of Chief Justice Abhay Shreeniwas Oka and Justice Nataraj Rangaswamy remarked whether the state can hold online classes for a few hours till the expert committee forms guidelines on the same.
“Can you (state government) completely deny the opportunity of learning to these students?" the bench asked, as per a report in Bar and Bench.
The plea filed by Anumitha Sharma and 22 others from Bengaluru noted that the government had no alternative to online classes, and was instead proposing classes via television and Youtube, which is not very different from online classes.
The government’s counsel told the court that the classes were suspended till an expert committee submits guidelines on the conduct of online classes and how technology can be used to impart education, with schools being shut due to the coronavirus pandemic. The government has asked for time till Friday to respond to the HC’s questions and said that the expert committee has been given 15 days and the guidelines will come soon.
According to LiveLaw, the court granted time but also asked the state to elaborate on the measures it had taken or will be taking to ensure that students in rural areas too, get the benefit of online classes if and when they begin.
"Online education has limitations in rural areas. The state will have to address it...Solution must be found out or else this will create a chaotic situation," the bench remarked.
The matter has been posted for June 26 for further hearing and the state has been asked to submit a response by then.
TNM previously reported that the parents of students enrolled in private schools have opposed the ban on online classes. A city teacher had also pointed out that private schools had spent huge amounts of money on software to enable online classes, and thus would face losses if the ban on online classes continued.