Accept applications from girls, HC tells Sainik schools

Jaipur: The Rajasthan High Court on Wednesday directed the Central government to take a policy decision on admitting girls in Sainik and military schools in the country and directed school authorities to accept applications from girls.
The division bench of Justice K S Jhaveri and Justice Mahendra Maheshwari gave the direction following a PIL filed by Mahi Yadav, who challenged the denial of admissions, contending that it was not only discriminatory but a violation of the Right to Education Act (RTE).
The court had earlier sent notices to secretaries of the Union ministries of human resource development, defence and the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE).
Additional solicitor general (ASG) R D Rastogi, appearing for the defence ministry, on Wednesday argued that the children studying at Sainik schools were given preference in selection for admissions at the National Defence Academy (NDA). He said those who graduate from NDA were posted for combat operations. Though women were given short service commissions in some branches of the Army like the Army Medical Corps, Judge Advocate General (JAG) and Signals, they were not selected in combat wings like infantry.
This is the reason why girls were not given admissions in military schools. So, the government has to take a policy decision in this case.
The petitioner asked that while paramilitary forces such as BSF were recruiting women, why the Army was lagging behind.
This is all the more important as women are now allowed full commission in the military service. The denial of admission is patently discriminatory and has to be done away with.
Former minister Guda gets bail:
Jaipur: The Rajasthan High Court granted bail to former minister Rajendra Guda in a case of alleged obstruction of policemen from discharging duty and damaging public property in Jhunjhunu district.
According to the police, Guda along with a few others had allegedly misbehaved with policemen and damaged public property after a man died in a road accident near his village in Jhunjhunu district on September 19 this year. When the police went to the spot after the accident, they were prevented from shifting the body.
He was arrested under sections 143 (unlawful assembly), 283 (danger or obstruction of public way or line of navigation), 332 (voluntarily causing hurt to deter public servant from discharging his duty) of IPC and Section 3 of the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, he said.
Gudha, a former Bahujan Samaj Party MLA, was the minister of state in the former Congress government, led by Ashok Gehlot.