The Delhi High Court said on Thursday that the Delhi government’s Directorate of Education (DoE) cannot impose rigid fee control on private schools and that its powers are limited to ensuring the schools do not make unreasonable profits or misuse surplus for non-educational purposes [Rumana through father Mr Hemant and Ors v Bluebells International School Kailash and Anr]. 

A Division Bench of Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela said that as per the Delhi School Education Act, 1973, and the Delhi School Education Rules, 1973, the DoE has the authority and power to regulate the fees to be charged by the unaided schools. 

However, such power or authority cannot travel beyond the measures to curb commercialisation, profiteering and indulgence in charging capitation fee, the Court said. 

“Accordingly, we are in complete agreement with the finding recorded by the learned Single Judge in the judgment under appeal to the effect that the scope of interference of DoE with the fixation of fees charged by an unaided recognised school is restricted to a case in which the school engages in charging of capitation fee or indulges in profiteering,” the Court said. 

The Division Bench rendered these findings while dealing with a set of appeals filed by parents and students as well as the DoE against a single-judge order that had quashed DoE directives by which two unaided and privately managed schools were restrained from increasing their fees.

After considering the case, the High Court dismissed the appeals and held that unaided schools have autonomy to fix their own fees but this autonomy is subject to two key restrictions - no profiteering and no charging of capitation fees.

The Division Bench also agreed with the single-judge’s decision that it will be open to the DoE to proceed afresh in accordance with law, after giving an opportunity of hearing to the schools, to determine as to whether there has been any infraction of the provisions of DSEA, 1973 and DSER, 1973 by the schools.

Advocates Khagesh B Jha, Shikha Sharma Bagga, Ankit Mann, Jyoti Shokeen and Amisha Dhariwan appeared for the appellant student. 

Delhi government’s Standing Counsel Sameer Vashisht, Panel Counsel Abhinav Sharma and Advocate Harshita Nathrani appeared for the Directorate of Education. 

Advocates Kamal Gupta, Tripti Gupta, Sparsh Aggarwal, Madhulika Singh and Rakshita Mathur represented the private schools. 

[Read Judgment]