The Calcutta High Court has ordered private schools in West Bengal to reduce the tuition fees by 20 per cent. The court was hearing a plea filed by a guardians’ forum of nearly 145 schools in Kolkata and its surrounding areas,
As per the court’s directive issued, the schools have been asked not to charge additional fees under the non-academic head. The order of the High Court will be applicable for all non-government aided schools as well.
The division bench comprising justices Sanjib Banerjee and Moushumi Bhattacharya directed that non-essential charges for using facilities that have not been availed during the lockdown will not be permissible during the months when the schools have not functioned physically.
Further, it asked the guardians to reach out individually to schools in case they require more reductions in terms of tuition fees.
In May 2020, a petition was filed in the Calcutta High Court seeking to regulate the fee structure of unaided private schools. Following this, the Education Minister of the West Bengal, Partha Chatterjee had appealed all private schools to not increase fees amid the pandemic.
The petitioner had also requested the court to direct the West Bengal government to ensure that no late fines should be charged from students. Also, the petitioner pleaded before the court to intervene that student’s name should not be struck off because of late payment of fees.
