CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has upheld the validity of a Government Order stopping payment of grant-in-aid to private schools after academic year 1991-92.

Dismissing a batch of writ petitions and appeals against a single judge order, a Division Bench comprising Justices P. Sathasivam and S. Manikumar said, "Grant-in-aid is neither a fundamental right nor a statutory right, and it depends upon the economic capacity of the State."

The Government, at the peak of its financial crisis, took a policy decision not to give financial assistance to schools set up from 1991-92. It also decided that recognition would be granted to institutions giving an undertaking that they would not seek grant forever.

"Not a free consent"

The petitions challenged the move, stating that paucity of funds could not be a valid reason to deny State aid to educational institutions, particularly those offering education to children aged below 14. They said the undertaking obtained from them at the time of granting recognition, that they would not insist on financial aid, was not a free consent. Advocate-General R. Viduthalai said the impugned provision did not suffer from any unconstitutionality, and that grant-in-aid was not a fundamental or statutory right.

Policy decisions were exclusively within the executive domain and there was no arbitrariness.

Confirming the March 22, 1999 order of the single judge, the Division Bench said on Saturday that grant-in-aid by the State was a matter that depended upon the economic capacity and decisions of the State. Referring to the submissions of Mr. Viduthalai, the Bench said the policy decision taken in 1991 could not be "lightly interfered with by the court."

The Judges, citing the statistics relating to the increase in the number of schools, hike in salary structure for teachers over the years and the resultant financial burden on the Government, said it had been satisfactorily demonstrated that the Government, on its own, was fulfilling its constitutional mandate of providing free education to all children.

Concluding that the decision in no way infringed on the right of minorities to establish and administer educational institutions, the Judges said: "The Advocate-General rightly argued that it is not correct to say that the right to establish and administer educational institutions of their choice includes the right to receive grant-in-aid... Grant-in-aid is an economic concept that would always depend upon the subjective satisfaction, financial stability and resources as well as the discretion of the State Government. It is also a matter of policy decision within the domain of the executive."

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