Delhi HC to pronounce judgement on nursery admission matter by Feb. 14 - Nursery Admissions Delhi 2017-18

The Delhi High Court on Thursday concluded arguments and reserved its judgement in the nursery admission case.

The Delhi High Court on Thursday concluded arguments and reserved its judgement in the nursery admission case.

The court is likely to pronounce its judgement by next week on whether January 7 notification of Delhi Lieutenant Governor regarding neighbourhood criteria will apply for admissions this year.

The order is expected to come by February 14.

Earlier, the court stated it to be a ‘race against time’ and added that it has to decide the plea on nursery admissions within a ‘very tight schedule’.

Justice Manmohan was referring to the deadline of February 14 for submission of nursery application forms in Delhi schools.

The court heard the arguments by petitioners, including section of parents and two school groups challenging the Delhi government’s December 19, 2016 and January 7 notifications that made 298 private schools, built on Delhi Development Authority (DDA) land, to accept nursery forms based only on the neighbourhood or distance criteria.

The school’s advocate replied that the issue can be bifurcated since due to the new circulars, a fresh ground of discrimination between two school groups has cropped up.

The school association argued that interest of 298 schools has to be safeguarded and being the government, it should not discriminate between students, more so, when there is no definition of neighbourhood criteria in the letter allotting land to the schools.

The High Court had also asked the Centre and the Delhi government to produce before it the allotment letters on the basis of which neighbourhood criteria was said to be imposed.

The two school groups Action Committee of Unaided Recognised Private Schools, Forum for Promotion of Quality Education and parents have contended that these circulars are bad in law and have curtailed their fundamental rights. (ANI)

Source: India.com

HC stays govt’s notification of private minority unaided schools to accept neighbourhood criteria - Nursery Admissions Delhi 2017-18

Delhi High Court today stayed the operation of AAP government’s circular asking private unaided minority schools to accept admission forms based only on the neighbourhood or distance criteria, saying they are free to devise their own procedures and should be treated differently.

The bench, which has rapped the AAP government for issuing such notification “at the eleventh hour putting everyone in a chaos like situation”, said the government in future should make an endeavour to frame such policy at least six months in advance, if not earlier.

“Prima facie the Delhi government notification dated January 7, 2017 is contrary to the constitutional mandate. This court is of the view that fundamental right of minority schools cannot be interfered with and their right to admit students cannot be taken away.

“Minority schools have the right of maximum administration which cannot be taken away by any terms of contract,” Justice Manmohan said.

Pointing to the apex court verdicts safeguarding the rights available to minority-run institutions under the Constitution, the high court said, “treat them differently and the right to administer a minority school also contains the right to devise procedures for admission as long as they (procedures) are fair and transparent”.

Granting interim relief to schools, it said, “keeping in view the decision of the Supreme Court and this court, such schools are entitled to admit students according to their own procedures as long as they are fair and transparent and accordingly the impugned notification (of January 7, 2017) is stayed till further order of this court.”

The court has now fixed the main petition for further hearing on March 21 by when it has asked Delhi government to file their affidavit. The court was hearing a batch of petitions by some private unaided minority schools challenging the notification issued by the Delhi government.

Yesterday, Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Sanjay Jain, appearing for the Directorate of Education (DoE), had told the court that they have left it open for minority schools to decide on admitting students, adding that “after admitting the minority students, whatever seats are left, on that we want them to apply the neighbourhood criteria”.

The Delhi government had earlier said the distance criteria was a “priority gradation system” where first preference would be given to children within 1 km, then 1-3 km and then, if there was vacancy, to beyond 6 kms.

source: www.indianexpress.com/

Schools may get to decide the distance to which neighbourhood rule will apply

Private schools may get the right to decide the area to which the neighbourhood criterion will apply for nursery admissions for the academic session 2017-18. The government plans to set one kilometre as the minimum distance for the norm.

This year the government is planning to make ‘neighborhood’ or the distance between a child’s home and school as the only criteria for nursery admissions. The move will impact 285 schools built on land allotted by the Delhi Development Authority. The land allotment terms state that schools cannot deny admissions to residents of neighboring areas.

The government on Monday held a consultation with schools to discuss nursery admission guidelines, implementation of DDA allotment letters, and the definition of the terms — locality and neighborhood.

Officials said the government’s plan is in line with a Supreme Court direction that says schools have to strictly implement terms of land allotment. The current consultation comes in the wake of a petition filed by ‘Justice for All’ in high court which states that as per the land lease agreement between schools and DDA, schools cannot deny admissions to students from the neighbourhood.

Deputy chief minister and education minister Manish Sisodia told schools that they will be free to define neighbourhood but the minimum distance they have to cover is 1 kilometre.

“The minister told schools that they have to implement the terms of land allotment. But the terms don’t define the limit of neighbourhood. Schools will be free to decide the distance they want to cover under neighbourhood but the minimum distance will be 1 kilometre,” sources said.

Advocate Khagesh Jha, who has filed the petition in HC, said, “Schools will have autonomy to decide the distance but fixing it at 1 kilometre means that the applicant from within that distance will not be denied admission by the school.”

Schools have been asked to send their feedback in a few days over government’s move. “We will send our feedback in a day or two,” said a school representative, who attended the meeting.

Nursery admissions for the upcoming academic session are likely to begin from January 1.

source:www.hindustantimes.com

Kejriwal bouncer for private schools....

Delhi govt scraps all quotas except EWS for nursery admissions

In yet another shocker to private schools, the Delhi government on Wednesday scrapped all quotas except the Economically Weaker Sections (EWS) for nursery admissions.

The decision was announced in a state cabinet meeting where Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal called the 'management quota' the breeding ground for biggest scandals in the education sector in the country and said that his government will not be a mute spectator to it.

The state government also made some stark changes in admission guidelines for private school in December last year.

"What is management quota? Under it, you get admission if someone is recommended by a chief minister, education minister, judge, police commissioner, SHOs or by an income tax official. Either it is a recommendation or seats are sold. Management quota is the biggest scandal in the country which the Delhi Government is scrapping. 75 per cent admissions in private schools will be under open category. Other than EWS category, there will be no other quota," Kejriwal announced.

The government also scrapped 62 arbitrary and discriminatory admission criteria listed by schools on their websites. The decision came in the midst of the ongoing admission process for nursery classes in over 2,500 private institutions in the Capital.

Warning schools of stringent action, Kejriwal said the government will use all available options against erring institutions, including takeovers. "If they do not budge, they can be derecognised or government can take them over," he said.

Private schools in Delhi have quotas for management, siblings, alumni and many others. The decision also prohibits schools from making parents declare details like whether they smoke or drink or consume non-vegetarian food. "The government will not tolerate this. The idea is to make the admission process pro-people and transparent," Education Minister Manish Sisodia said.

The HC, in an order, had asked the Delhi government not to micro-manage the admission process following which the education department had allowed schools to frame their respective criteria and put them on their websites. Kejriwal said certain criteria put out by schools were very shocking and in violation of Article 14 of the Constitution relating to equality before law. "The education department officials told me that court has directed not to micro-manage the admission process. I told them not to worry. Tell the court that I have done this. I will tell the court that management quota is the biggest scandal and this should be stopped. And now the cabinet has given its approval," said Kejriwal.

However, school associations which had moved court in 2014 after Lieutenant Governor Najeeb Jung had notified the scrapping of quotas, claimed the matter is still pending and hence the announcement amounts to contempt of court. There was a judgment by a single bench of high court granting autonomy to schools for deciding quotas.

"The government had challenged the judgment seeking a stay before a double bench but the matter is still pending. Such an announcement at this stage when the matter is sub-judice amounts to contempt of court," said SK Bhattacharya, President of Action Committee for Unaided Private Schools, which has 400 schools registered under it.

"Also, management quota is not just a brainchild of private schools but also of the Justice Ganguly Committee who had also supported the issue. The tearing hurry in which the cabinet has taken this decision is not understandable," Bhattacharya added.

Private schools in Delhi adopted a cautious approach in reacting to Delhi government's decision of scrapping the management quota for nursery admissions even as various associations of unaided private schools reacted strongly saying the move is an attack on the schools' autonomy.

Ashok Sehgal, Principal, Ahlcon International School and Chairman, National Progressive Schools Conference (NPSC) said, "After schools went to high court and it ruled in favour of the schools and connotations of it, they challenged it and the matter is pending. Then to bring any order at this stage is surprising especially when the admissions have already begun. It will create further confusion for parents."

source:indiatoday.intoday.in