The Hindu : New Delhi News : Delhi Govt. order to roll back fee hike stayed

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Delhi Govt. order to roll back fee hike stayed

Staff Reporter

Contradicts earlier order permitting increase: Court

The Bench pulled up Government for not filing a reply to the petition challenging the fee hike
The Bench will take up the petition for final hearing on May 25

NEW DELHI: The Delhi High Court on Thursday stayed a Delhi Government public notice asking private schools in the Capital which had raised the tuition fess without convening and taking the consent of the Parent-Teachers’ Associations to roll back the hike.

A Division Bench of the Court stayed the public notice issued on April 16 saying that it was contradictory to the February 11 order of the Government permitting the schools to increase the tuition fees.

The Bench pulled up the Government for not filing a reply to the petition challenging the fee hike.

However, the Bench later gave it two weeks to file the reply.

The Bench will take up the petition for final hearing on May 25.

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi on Wednesday had informed the Court that it had asked the managers of all recognised schools under it not to increase the tuition fees and other charges without prior permission of the Director (Primary Education).

The civic body had further informed the Court that it had also asked these schools and the societies running them to provide details of their balance sheets, profit and loss details and receipt and payment accounts.

The petitioners—Delhi Abhibhavak Mahasangh, Social Jurist and Faith Academy Parents’ Association—through their counsel Ashok Aggarwal submitted that the decision to allow the schools to increase the fees was not based on any rational or legal basis.

The petitioners said the Government should not have allowed these schools to increase the fees without examining their financial records and going through the parameters laid down by the Supreme Court and the High Court for a fee hike.

They also urged the Court to issue a direction for refund of the increased fee collected from the parents.

The Government should also ensure auditing of the accounts of each of these schools by the Comptroller and Auditor-General of India in terms of Section 18 (6) of the Delhi Education Act, 1973, the petitioners stated.

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