The Supreme Court said that it cannot ask states to reopen schools amid the pandemic as the country has just come out of the second wave of Covid-19. A bench of justices declined to consider a plea by a 12th standard student from Delhi for directions to Centre and states to take a time-bound decision in connection with the physical re-opening of schools and conduct of offline teaching.

The bench said that it cannot direct the states to reopen for offline classes as the second wave has started declining and the spike is not yet known. The bench also said that it cannot take over governance and decide on these issues. It has been well acknowledged that children need to get back to school for a proper education but the decision to reopen schools has to be decided by the states.

The petitioner said that he is aggrieved by the indecision on the Centre’s part and contended that if the public places can be opened, why the schools are not being prioritized!!