Hearing on nursery admission PILcontinues today
30 Jan 2013 5:17 AM IST
Hearing a Public Interest Litigation by NGO Social Jurist challenging government notifications giving power to unaided private schools to formulate their own admission criteria, the Delhi high court said its decision on the PIL would also affect nursery class admissions for the academic session 2013-14. The hearing in the case would continue on Tuesday.
‘Our order (on the PIL) would also be applicable on nursery admission for ensuing academic session 2013-14,’ a bench of Chief Justice D Murugesan and Justice V K Jain said.
NGO Social Jurist has challenged two notifications, issued by the Human Resources Development Ministry and the Directorate of Education of Delhi government, saying that these two notifications have given a totally free hand to all unaided recognised private schools to formulate their own nursery admission criteria based on categorisation of children.
The petition said that some schools give preferences in admission on grounds such as religion, alumni and sibling, which is against the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act.
‘You (DoE) cannot dilute the provision of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act. You are giving preference to one child over another, which is against the Act, by allowing them (schools) to formulate their own admission criteria,’ the court said.
‘We will have to test the notifications ... and how far such powers can be extended to schools (by the governments under the Act)... If you give liberty to the schools then the whole purpose of the Act would be lost,’ it said.
The counsel, appearing for an association of private unaided schools, said that schools be allowed to formulate reasonable admission criteria. The arguments would continue on Tuesday.
The petition has alleged that the power given to schools to lay down admission criteria was contrary to Section 13 of the Act, which says that there would be no screening process of either parents or of kids and no child would be discriminated against. It said that the as per the Act, admission would be taken by way of draw of lots and the neighbourhood would be only criteria and separate guidelines cannot be framed by schools.
‘Our order (on the PIL) would also be applicable on nursery admission for ensuing academic session 2013-14,’ a bench of Chief Justice D Murugesan and Justice V K Jain said.
NGO Social Jurist has challenged two notifications, issued by the Human Resources Development Ministry and the Directorate of Education of Delhi government, saying that these two notifications have given a totally free hand to all unaided recognised private schools to formulate their own nursery admission criteria based on categorisation of children.
The petition said that some schools give preferences in admission on grounds such as religion, alumni and sibling, which is against the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act.
‘You (DoE) cannot dilute the provision of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act. You are giving preference to one child over another, which is against the Act, by allowing them (schools) to formulate their own admission criteria,’ the court said.
‘We will have to test the notifications ... and how far such powers can be extended to schools (by the governments under the Act)... If you give liberty to the schools then the whole purpose of the Act would be lost,’ it said.
The counsel, appearing for an association of private unaided schools, said that schools be allowed to formulate reasonable admission criteria. The arguments would continue on Tuesday.
The petition has alleged that the power given to schools to lay down admission criteria was contrary to Section 13 of the Act, which says that there would be no screening process of either parents or of kids and no child would be discriminated against. It said that the as per the Act, admission would be taken by way of draw of lots and the neighbourhood would be only criteria and separate guidelines cannot be framed by schools.
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