The Delhi High Court today termed a PIL as ‘Publicity Interest’ Litigation and dismissed it with Rs 20,000 cost which had alleged that private schools are charging exorbitant fees from students and denying online classes during the Covid-19 pandemic.
A bench of the Chief Justice D.N. Patel and Justice Prateek Jalan has said that the petition has been filed without doing any homework and the details on which the petitioner relied have not been indicated.
The bench grilled the petitioner over the claim that proper online classes are not being held, and asked what is meant by word “proper”?
“It is such a vague term. It appears to be a bogus matter,” the bench said. The court has directed the petitioners to deposit the cost of Rs 20,000 in the Delhi Legal Services Authority within four weeks. The court said the amount would be used for access to justice programmes.
The plea was filed by the Anti-Corruption Council of India Trust, through advocate Ashok Kumar Singh, claiming that according to news reports several schools are allegedly collecting fees under various components, other than tuition fees, and are denying access to online classes to those students who are unable to pay the amounts demanded.
It contended that such actions are in violation of the Delhi government’s directions to schools not to charge anything more than tuition fees during the prevailing pandemic when schools are closed.
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It had claimed that according to the Delhi Parents Association there are 76 private schools which are in violation of the Delhi government direction.