Kerala High Court Allows 16-Year-Old Student to Participate in State-Level Kalolsavam After Technical Glitch at District Event

Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala: The Kerala High Court has granted permission to a 16-year-old student to participate in the upcoming State-Level School Kalolsavam, after a power outage during her district-level dance performance prevented proper evaluation. The state-level competition begins today, January 14.

Student Perseveres Despite Sudden Blackout

The incident occurred at the district-level Kalolsavam in Thiruvananthapuram, where the student was competing in the Girls’ Kuchipudi category. While performing on stage, the lights suddenly went out for 32 seconds, and the accompanying music stopped. Despite the technical disruption, the student continued her dance without music or lighting. By the time the lights returned, her performance time had ended.

Judges awarded her fifth place, which initially disqualified her from participating in the state-level event. Dissatisfied with the assessment, the student filed a complaint with the Education Department, arguing that the blackout had unfairly affected her performance and that she deserved a higher ranking.

Court Recognizes Impact of Technical Glitch

The Education Department maintained that the 32-second outage had minimal effect and, after reviewing the score sheets, stage manager’s report, video footage, and evaluation sheets, upheld the results. However, her legal team, led by Rajesh Kannan and Praveen N Pillai, argued in the High Court that technical disruptions could have negatively affected her confidence and performance. They contended that denying her a fair opportunity to re-perform was unjust.

High Court Orders State-Level Participation

Justice Bechu Kurian Thomas, presiding over the bench, ruled in favor of the student. The court observed that sudden technical failures during a performance can significantly impact a participant’s confidence and execution, and noted that the student had continued performing despite the blackout. While acknowledging her fifth-place finish at the district level, the court emphasized that the disruption may have influenced her evaluation, and she deserved a fair opportunity.

Following the verdict, the student is now eligible to compete at the State-Level Kalolsavam in the Girls’ Kuchipudi general category, starting January 14.