HC allows OCI student, if selected, to represent country in Olympiad
The Karnataka High Court on Thursday permitted a 14-year-old student,
who is an Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) cardholder, to participate in
the national-level training-cum-selection camp to be held in Mumbai
from April 23 for selecting candidates to represent the country in the
23rd International Astronomy Olympiad to be held in Sri Lanka in
September.
Justice A.S. Bopanna passed the interim order, which will be subject to a final order, on the petition filed by Mohit Hulse through his father, Narayan Hulse, a resident of Bengaluru.
The court also allowed Mohit to represent India in the Olympiad to be held in Sri Lanka in the event of his selection.
However, it was made clear that the petitioner is not entitled to seek equity in the event the petition is ultimately dismissed at a later stage, and the expenses incurred by the authorities for his training or sponsoring shall also remain subject to the final decision of the court.
The petitioner had questioned the condition imposed for selection — that the participants must be a citizen of India having a valid Indian passport.
Contending that OCI cardholders have been treated on a par with the citizens under the OCI scheme framed under the Citizenship Act since 2009, he claimed that the conditions to possess Indian passport and citizenship is contrary to the OCI scheme of the Union government.
The petitioner is a United Kingdom passport holder by virtue of his birth as his parents, both Indian citizens, were staying in the U.K. due to their vocation, and later returned to India. Mohit has been studying in Bengaluru since first standard, it has been said in the petition.
Mohit is an eighth standard student of Sri Kumaran Public School, off Kanakapura Road, and he is among the 21 students, who were selected for the camp based on their performance in the Indian National Astronomy Olympiad-2018.
Justice A.S. Bopanna passed the interim order, which will be subject to a final order, on the petition filed by Mohit Hulse through his father, Narayan Hulse, a resident of Bengaluru.
The court also allowed Mohit to represent India in the Olympiad to be held in Sri Lanka in the event of his selection.
However, it was made clear that the petitioner is not entitled to seek equity in the event the petition is ultimately dismissed at a later stage, and the expenses incurred by the authorities for his training or sponsoring shall also remain subject to the final decision of the court.
The petitioner had questioned the condition imposed for selection — that the participants must be a citizen of India having a valid Indian passport.
Contending that OCI cardholders have been treated on a par with the citizens under the OCI scheme framed under the Citizenship Act since 2009, he claimed that the conditions to possess Indian passport and citizenship is contrary to the OCI scheme of the Union government.
The petitioner is a United Kingdom passport holder by virtue of his birth as his parents, both Indian citizens, were staying in the U.K. due to their vocation, and later returned to India. Mohit has been studying in Bengaluru since first standard, it has been said in the petition.
Mohit is an eighth standard student of Sri Kumaran Public School, off Kanakapura Road, and he is among the 21 students, who were selected for the camp based on their performance in the Indian National Astronomy Olympiad-2018.
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