The Delhi High Court on Wednesday directed private schools which have failed to refund the excess fee charged by them despite a government order to deposit 75% of the principal amount within 14 days to avoid coercive action.
A Bench of Justices Siddharth Mridul and Najmi Waziri directed these city schools to deposit the amount in the form of “cash, fix deposits receipts or bank guarantees favouring the Registrar General” in the High Court Registry.
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Court takes exception
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The court took strong exception to the fact that over six years had passed since 2011 and the schools had failed on some pretext or the other to comply with the Justice Anil Dev Singh Committee recommendations to refund excess fee.
“We had given you adequate time to put your house in order. Yet, the schools have not complied with our order. They must themselves deposit the amount extracted in excess from students. We acknowledge that there may be variations in the amount calculated by the committee...You deposit the amount and we are inclined to give an expeditious hearing,” the Bench observed.
The court was hearing a bunch of pleas filed by various private schools seeking recall of the Justice Anil Dev Singh Committee recommendations to refund excess fees. They had also challenged a May 29 notice of the Directorate of Education (DoE) ordering refund of excess fees charged by schools, failing which the institutions could face de- recognition or takeover by the Department.
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The court directed various schools and the DoE to sit together and articulate the broader issues related to the findings of the panel, which the petitioners were challenging in the case.
The direction came after senior advocates Salman Khurshid and Amit Sibal, appearing for some private schools, said there were discrepancies in the findings of the panel, and challenged some of its recommendations, including computation of excess fee. The Bench posted the matter for hearing on September 25.