The Madras High Court on Tuesday summoned the School Education Secretary and the Director of School Education to get them to explain why they had failed to submit details of private primary schools functioning in the State without obtaining recognition and the action taken against them so far.
A Division Bench of Justices Vineet Kothari and Anita Sumanth directed the officials to be present in the court on February 21. The judges warned that they would be constrained to direct government officials who file sketchy and incomplete reports in the court to make security deposits using their personal funds.
No interim order
The interim direction was issued on a public interest litigation petition that had been pending in the court since 2017. The PIL had claimed that as many as four unauthorised schools were functioning in Ariyalur district. However, denying the claim, a Special Government Pleader informed the court that three out of the four were recognised schools.
When the Division Bench sought to know whether any interim order had been passed on the writ petition, restraining the School Education Department from taking action against the school, the law officer replied in the negative. Disapproving of such inaction, the Bench said the officials should have taken action in the absence of any court order.
