06/10/2022, 16:24 CBSE cannot deny students name change on certificates: Supreme Court - The Hindu

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CBSE cannot deny students name change on certificates:

Supreme Court
Krishnadas Rajagopal
NEW DELHI JUNE 03, 2021 23:51 IST
UPDATED:
JUNE 03, 2021 23:53 IST

Right to change names is part of freedom of speech, the Court says.

The Supreme Court on Thursday found a Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) rule
that prohibited students from changing or correcting their names on Board certificates,
based on a presumption that it would affect “administrative efficiency”, far-removed from
social realities and even “absurd”.

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The court said the CBSE’s examination bylaws of 2007 made it look as if the Board was more
concerned about administrative paperwork than the future prospects of its students, who
use their certificates as a public document to go for higher studies and gain employment.

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06/10/2022, 16:24 CBSE cannot deny students name change on certificates: Supreme Court - The Hindu

“Students stand to lose more due to inaccuracies in their certificates than the Board, whose
sole worry is increasing administrative burden… Administrative efficiency cannot be the
sole concern of CBSE. Every institution desires efficiency in their functioning. But it does
not mean that efficiency is achieved by curbing their basic functions… One of the primary
functions of CBSE is to grant certificates to its students,” a three-judge Bench led by Justice
A.M. Khanwilkar observed in a 132-page judgment.

Right to be forgotten
On the other hand, the court illustrated how a juvenile accused of being in conflict with the
law or a sexual abuse victim whose identity is compromised due to lapses by the media or
the investigative body may consider changing the name to seek rehabilitation in the
society in exercise of their right to be forgotten. “If the Board, in such a case, refuses to
change the name, the student would be compelled to live with the scars of the past,” Justice
Khanwilkar highlighted.

The court ordered the CBSE to take “immediate steps” to amend the by-laws and
incorporate a mechanism outlined in the judgment “for recording correction or change, as
the case may be, in the certificates already issued or to be issued by it”. The court said one’s
name is an intrinsic element of identity. The right to change our name is part of the right to
freedom of speech and expression.

“Identity is an amalgam of various internal and external [factors], including acquired

characteristics of an individual. A name can be regarded as one of the foremost indicators
of identity,” Justice Khanwilkar, who authored the 132-page judgment, observed. The other
judges on the Bench were Justices B.R. Gavai and Krishna Murari.

The court said the seminal question in the case was whether the CBSE’s quest for
administrative efficiency could deny a student “full control of her own identity”.

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06/10/2022, 16:24 CBSE cannot deny students name change on certificates: Supreme Court - The Hindu

“An individual must be in complete control of her name. The law must enable her to retain
as well as exercise such control freely for all times. Such control would inevitably include
the aspiration of an individual to be recognised by a different name for a just cause… For
instance, ‘gender’ is an evolving concept which could warrant changes in identity
documents,” Justice Khanwilkar reasoned.
To use “administrative efficiency” as a ground to make it practically impossible for a
student to alter her identity in the Board certificates, no matter how urgent and important
it is, would be “highly disproportionate” and cannot be termed a reasonable restriction on
the right to change one’s name.

Proper balance
“Reasonableness” would demand a proper balance between a student’s right to be
identified in the official records in a manner of her choice, and the Board’s argument of
administrative efficiency, the court said, allowing students to apply for correction or
change in their names on the certificates within a reasonable period.

Noting that the CBSE was a ‘State’ in the Constitution due its public function, the court said
State instrumentalities should play the role of enablers in the exercise of citizens’ rights.
This includes correction of their records owing to purely personal choices.

“CBSE certificates are public records of the Board and they carry a presumption of
genuineness which must be respected by preserving the accuracy of such certificates… It
would be contrary to the objectives of CBSE if it refuses to correct its documents despite
having verified the genuineness of the supporting public documents (like Aadhar card,
Passport, Birth Certificate etc.) and continues to perpetuate the obvious errors in the school
records,” the court observed.

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