SC issues notices to J-K Govt, FFRC over plea by private schools

NEW DELHI — The Supreme Court has issued notices to the Jammu & Kashmir Government and the Committee formed for fixation and regulation of fee in private schools, known as Fee and Fund Regulatory Committee (FFRC), while hearing a writ petition filed by a federation of private schools, namely National Independent Schools Alliance (NISA).

The court of Justice L Nageswara Rao and Justice Aniruddha Bose issued notices while hearing a writ petition in which NISA has challenged the notice issued on January 19, 2021, by the said committee to 442 private schools operating in Jammu and Kashmir.

In the writ petition, it has been claimed that the committee has no power to determine the school fees in private schools that don’t enjoy government patronage.

Fee Regulatory Committee had directed private schools to file past two years’ account records for the purpose of fixation of school fees in their schools. The private schools from Kashmir Valley have not obliged to the directions so far, citing various reasons.

Advocate Kapil Sibal that represented NISA in the court said that Fee Fixation Committee has no mandate to seek accounts and records from those private schools which do not get government aid.

The Supreme Court, after hearing the arguments, issued notice to Jammu Kashmir Government and the Fee Fixation Committee, asking them to clear their stand.

Pertinently, majority of the private schools in Kashmir Valley are aided by the government.

Recently, a couple of schools including Presentation Convent and Iqbal Memorial Institute were deprived of facilities being provided by Board of School Education after these schools were found ‘harassing’ parents and not complying with the government orders.