HC ruled time limit for institutions seeking verification certificates

chennai: madras high court has ruled the school education department should prescribe a time limit for heads of institutions seeking verification of mark certificates for genuineness. on a writ petition filed in 2002 by a law college student, whose results were withheld after her third year examinations in 2001, justice k n basha said 'it is high time for the authorities concerned to prescribe time limit to avoid inordinate delay in verification of the genuineness of the mark certificate.' 'the student was admitted to the madurai law college for the five-year bachelor of law degree course for academic year 1998-1999, after she submitted a mark sheet with re-totalled marks. however,the college principal issued a show-cause notice on march 21, 2001 stating the mark sheet was forged. after an enquiry, the principal cancelled her admission. following a writ petition filed by the student, she was allowed to write all the examinations in her third, fourth and fifth years, but her results were withheld. after perusing the evidence, justice basha ruled the principal had relied on a letter sent by the joint director of government examinations (higher secondary), dated march 3, 2001 to cancel the admission. the principal 'committed a serious error of law,' by placing the burden of proof of the genuineness of the certificate on the student, the judge said