11-year-old student challenges CM SHRI school entrance tests before Delhi HC

New Delhi [India], November 25 : An 11-year-old student, Janmesh Sagar, through his father, has moved the Delhi High Court after the Supreme Court advised him to seek relief there.
The petition challenges the Delhi Government's policy mandating entrance tests for admission to Classes VI, VII and VIII in CM SHRI Schools, asserting that the requirement constitutes an illegal screening procedure prohibited under Section 13 of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education (RTE) Act, 2009, and infringes the fundamental right to education under Article 21-A of the Constitution.
It specifically assails the July 23, 2025, circular that introduced the admission test for these classes, arguing that the scheme directly violates the statutory bar on any form of screening of a child or parent at the elementary level.
The petitioner seeks an explicit judicial declaration that Section 13 of the RTE Act applies uniformly to all elementary schools, including Specified Category Schools defined under Section 2(p).
The plea stresses that CM SHRI Schools, being government-run institutions, cannot claim exemption from these statutory safeguards.
It is further contended that subjecting young students to an entrance examination is arbitrary, unconstitutional, and defeats the legislative mandate of ensuring equitable and non-discriminatory access to elementary education. The matter is likely to be taken up for hearing by the Delhi High Court on Friday.