Mumbai, June 19: The Bombay High Court has said it can only offer sympathy, but not legal relief, to a psychology student suffering from acute depression and a personality disorder who was barred by her university from appearing for third-year re-examinations due to low attendance.
Refusing to interfere with the university's decision, a bench of Justices Riyaz Chagla and Farhan Dubash observed that courts have a limited role in academic matters and educational institutions are best placed to regulate attendance requirements and academic standards.
Court cites limits of judicial intervention
"We are not insensitive to the petitioner's circumstances and extend our deepest sympathies to her and her family," the court said in its June 16 order.
"Sympathy, however, cannot be a substitute for legal entitlement. A court is concerned with the legality of decision-making and not with re-writing academic regulations or creating exemptions that the governing framework itself does not contemplate."
The bench dismissed the student's plea challenging an April 15 debarment letter issued by a Mumbai-based university, which disallowed her from appearing for final-semester re-examinations scheduled this month.
The third-year Bachelor of Science (Applied Psychology) student had urged the court to consider her exceptional medical circumstances, arguing that denial of permission to sit for the examinations would result in the loss of an entire academic year, causing irreparable harm to her education and mental well-being.
Student cites mental health issues
According to the petition, the student had maintained the required attendance in previous semesters. However, during her final semester, she was diagnosed with a psychiatric condition and personality disorder that led to depression, impaired emotional regulation and stress intolerance.
The plea further stated that in March this year, she suffered an acute medical episode involving suicidal ideation and hallucinations, following which her parents took her to their hometown in Uttar Pradesh.
Her father informed the university about her condition but did not send any further communication explaining her prolonged absence from classes.
After she remained absent for nearly a month, the university issued the debarment letter on April 15. The student's father later emailed the institution requesting that she be allowed to appear for the re-examinations, but received no response.
Attendance rules applied uniformly
The High Court said no exceptional grounds had been made out to warrant interference. It noted that it was not equipped to independently assess medical records and psychiatric evaluations, and reiterated that judicial intervention in academic matters is justified only in cases of arbitrariness or violation of statutory provisions.
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The court also noted that attendance rules had been applied uniformly and that around 350 other students had similarly been declared ineligible due to a shortage of attendance.
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