HC asks L-G to hear private school before taking over its management

The Delhi High Court has asked Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena to grant a personal hearing to a private unaided school here before deciding about taking over its management owing to alleged administrative and financial irregularities.

Justice C Hari Shankar said since the power to take over a school is vested in the lieutenant governor as the administrator under the law, a hearing has to be granted by him and not the Directorate of Education which issued a show cause notice to the school. “It also goes without saying that personal hearing can be granted only by the authority which is to take the decision. Law in this country does not envisage, or even tolerate, personal hearing being granted by Peter, where the decision is to be taken by Paul,” said the court in an order passed this week. “A Division Bench of this Court held that the power to take over the management of a school vested only in the Hon’ble Lieutenant Governor as the administrator, and did not vest in the Directorate of Education (DOE),” it stated.