Delhi school fee hikes: All you need to know — why are parents protesting, CM Rekha Gupta says ‘will suffer…’

Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, on April 15, promised to take action against private schools that have arbitrarily allegedly increased fees, according to a PTI report. 

In a strong statement that expressed “zero tolerance” policy for private schools that “threaten” parents with arbitrary fee hikes, Gupta said that the government would take action and send notices to the institutions that parents have complained about, it added.

What did Rekha Gupta say about Delhi private schools' fee hike?

CM Rekha Gupta told reporters that she has met parents who shared their grievances, adding that rules regarding school fees must be followed.

“Parents have been meeting me with their grievances... that is for sure... no school has any right to harass parents and children. They have no right to threaten children and hike fees abnormally. There are rules and regulations (for fee hikes) which must be followed,” she said.

In regard to what action will be taken, Gupta said, “If any school is found indulging in all these, then they will have to suffer. We will be issuing notices today to all those schools regarding which we have received complaints.”

Why are parents protesting?

On April 8, parents of some children studying at a private school in Dwarka protested outside the gates against a recent fee hike by the administration, according to a PTI report.

The protesting parents alleged that their children were being confined to “library arrest” since March 20, in order to pressure the parents to cough up the increased fees. One parent said their child's right to education was being denied and alleged that the school was ignoring directions from the district magistrate and police.

The report added that the school did not respond to queries on the matter.

Delhi school fee hike: What has happened till now?

At the time of the parents' protests, Delhi Education Minister Ashish Sood had said that an inspection team visited the school based on complaints and that sub-divisional magistrates (SDMs) across Delhi have been instructed to inspect schools and collect responses to an 18-point questionnaire designed to assess compliance.

Sood further said that a committee comprising the deputy director of education and the director of accounts has been set up. The Education Department has launched a dedicated email ID for parents to submit complaints about unjustified fee increases.

(With inputs from PTI)