New Delhi, Feb 28 The Delhi High Court on Saturday deferred the implementation of the city government's mandate to private schools to constitute school-level fee-regulation committees (SLFRCs) for the upcoming academic session.
A bench of Chief Justice D K Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia said during the pendency of the petitions challenging the government decision, the constitution of the SLFRCs shall remain in abeyance and the schools shall be entitled to collect the same fees for the academic year 2026-2027 as they did the previous academic year.
Any exorbitant fees, the bench added, shall be regulated in accordance with law.
The bench passed the order on pleas moved by several school associations seeking a stay on a February 1 notification of the Delhi government that asked the schools to set up the SLFRCs within 10 days.
The petitioners include the Delhi Public School Society, Action Committee Unaided Recognised Private Schools, The Forum of Minority Schools, Forum for Promotion of Quality Education for All, Rohini Educational Society and Association of Public Schools.
The court said the fees for the upcoming session are unlikely to be fixed for each of the schools prior to April 1 in terms of the timelines provided in the February 1 notification.
It added that the Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Act, however, provides that the schools can collect the fee of the previous academic year until the fee is fixed or approved under the provisions of the Act and therefore, no prejudice will be caused if the notification is put in abeyance at this stage.
The court said no irreparable loss would be caused to the students if the notification is stayed as any fees levied during the pendency of the matter would be subject to the outcome of the petitions and schools would be liable to refund any excess amount.
"It would be expedient to defer the constitution of the SLFRC during the pendency of the petitions, which will be hard finally on March 12," the court opined.
Seeking a stay, the schools claimed that the notification is legally unsustainable as it changes the timelines prescribed in the Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Act for the constitution of the SLFRCs.
The government, however, argued that the "dates" given in the Act are neither "sacrosanct" nor do they form part of its "basic structure" and therefore, "slight tinkering" with such timelines as a special one-time measure would survive judicial scrutiny.
The government asserted that the Act is meant to prevent commercialisation and profiteering by schools, and that the notification stands to cause no irreparable loss to the schools.
In the 34-page judgment, the court said the timelines contemplated under the notification are prima facie "unworkable" in view of the time needed to hear the pleas.
It further said that if an SLFRC is not able to arrive at a unanimous agreement, the school management has to refer the matter to the District Fee Appellate Committee for a decision within 15 days in accordance with the Act, but the notification does not contemplate a revised timeline for reference to the appellate committee.
"It is premature to presume that the SLFRC constituted by each of the schools shall be able to approve the proposed fee unanimously," the court said.
"In case any of the SLFRCs is unable to approve the proposed fee unanimously, the next step is to refer the matter to the District Fee Appellate Committee. However, the notification does not provide for the revised timeline for reference to the District Fee Appellate Committee. At the same time, the Act permits the schools to collect the fee of the previous academic year during the pendency of the reference before the District Fee Appellate Committee," it added.
The court also considered the "practical difficulty" of non-availability of the requisite audited financial statements as well as the need to hold a physical meeting of parents for selection to the committee when final examinations are ongoing to conclude that the balance of convenience is in favour of the schools.
"Accordingly, it is directed that during the pendency of the present petitions, the operation and implementation of clauses 3(1) and (2) of the notification shall remain in abeyance and the petitioners shall be entitled to collect the same fee for the academic year 2026-27 as was collected for the previous academic year till the fee is fixed or approved in terms of the provisions of the Act and the Rules, subject to the outcome of these petitions," the court ordered.
The government issued a gazette notification on February 1 to "smoothen" the implementation of the Delhi School Education (Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees) Act, after the Supreme Court raised questions over its new fee-fixation law.
According to the notification, every school was directed to constitute an SLFRC within 10 days of the publication of the order.
It said school managements must submit details of the proposed fee structure for the next block of three academic years, starting from 2026-27, within 14 days of forming the SLFRCs, after which the committees will proceed to fix the fees according to the provisions of the Act
