In an interim order passed on Monday ( September 7, 2020), the Rajasthan High Court has allowed private schools in the State to collect 70% of the annual tuition fees in three installments for online classes conducted amid the COVID-19 pandemic (Society Of Catholic Education Institutions In Rajasthan and ors v. State of Rajasthan).
The order states, "... this Court by an interim measure and till the situation gets normalized, directs the school authorities to allow the students to continue their studies online and allow them to deposit 70% of the tuition fees element from the total fees being charged for the year." In the interest of balancing the interests of both the schools and the students amid the pandemic situation, Justice Sanjeev Prakash Sharma has ordered as follows: 70% of the tuition fees for the academic year 2020-21 can be collected by the schools. The said 70% of the tuition fees shall be paid for the period from March 2020 in three installments. The first installment is to be paid on or before September 30, the second installment is to be paid by November 30, 2020, and the third installment is to be paid by January 31, 2021. Students cannot be expelled for their parents' failure to remit the tuition fee installments in time. However, students can be disallowed from attending online classes for such failure to pay up the fee. The Court was hearing various pleas moved on behalf of private schools in Rajasthan challenging a Rajasthan Government direction that required private schools to defer school fee collection indefinitely amid the pandemic. An initial circular directed private schools to hold off on levying fees for three months, while a second circular dated July 7 extended the operation of the first circular till further notice. The schools argued that they had infrastructural facilities to maintain and that they had to pay their non-teaching staff, while also shouldering the costs of online classes and teachers' salaries. The Bench sought to strike a balance between the two opposing interests. It observed that "... at this interim stage, this Court finds that a balance is required to be struck between the financial difficulty of the school management relating to the release of the salary of the staff and minimum upkeep of school on one side and the financial pressure, which has come on the parents due to the pandemic and lock-down as noticed above."
Noting that parents could not be burdened with heavy fee requirements and that schools could not be expected to unilaterally shoulder the costs of maintaining its infrastructure, the Court found that these interests had not been considered by the State when it issued its notification. The Court opined that school associations' arguments about the State Disaster Management Authority's lack of authority to issue such directions are not sustainable. It, however, informed that a more detailed examination of these issues may be undertaken at the stage of final disposal.
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Schools to charge reduced fees as per government order due to the ‘unprecedented’ times of the COVID-19 pandemic : Rajasthan HC [READ JUDGMENT]
Judiciary
Dec 23, 2020
Gautami Chakravarty
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Editor: Ekta Joshi
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The Rajasthan High court hearing a writ petition directed the schools to follow the state government notification and charge 60% tuition fees in schools affiliated with the state board and 70% tuition fees in private schools affiliated to CBSE for the current academic year after taking into consideration the plight of the parents in these ‘unprecedented’ times of the pandemic.In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic upon implementation of the nation-wide lockdown, the Rajasthan state...
Rajasthan HC asks State Government to ensure that Prisoners are not forced to do menial jobs based on Caste
Judiciary
Dec 22, 2020
Mriganc Mishra Intern Aquilas Legal Solutio
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Editor: Ekta Joshi
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Inquiring about the proposed steps for complete overhauling of the Prison Manual, the Rajasthan High Court on Thursday (17th December 2020) asked the State Government to ensure that the prisoners are not forced to indulge in menial jobs like cleaning toilers etc. merely on the basis of their caste and also that no under trial prisoner is forced to perform such jobs in prison.The Bench of Justice Devendra Kachhawaha and Justice Sandeep Mehta further directed-“Considering the progressive...
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