Petition in Supreme Court against CBSE’s new three-language policy for Class 9

A petition has been filed before the Supreme Court challenging a Central Board of Secondary Education new policy mandating the learning of three languages for class 9 students.

The petition moved by some students and parents was mentioned by Senior Advocate Mukul Rohatgi before a Bench comprising of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice Vipul M Pancholi.

Rohatgi argued that the sudden requirement to study two additional languages in class 9 will disrupt preparation for class 10 board exams and would place an unreasonable burden on students.

"How can suddenly learn it and appear in 10th. This will create chaos," submitted Rohatgi.

Taking note of the submissions, the Bench said the Court would list the matter for hearing next week.

"We will list it next week," CJI Kant said.

The Central Board of Secondary Education’s recent move on languages is part of a broader shift aligned with the National Education Policy 2020 (NEP 2020), which emphasises multilingualism and the “three-language formula.”

The policy encourages students to learn multiple languages, including at least two Indian languages, with flexibility left to states and schools.

Traditionally, CBSE students studied two languages up to Class 10. These languages were typically English and a second language (such as Hindi or a regional language). The new framework, however, reportedly expands this by requiring students entering Class 9 to take on an additional language component, effectively increasing the number of languages studied at the secondary level.

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