New Delhi:
The city government was today asked by the Delhi High Court to respond to a plea accusing a private school of charging "excess" fees from differently-abled students in comparison to general students.
A bench of Chief Justice D Murugesan and Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw issued notice to Delhi government's Directorate of Education and also to private school Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan Mehta Vidyalaya and sought their replies by November 21.
The court was hearing a PIL filed by civil rights society Social Jurists through its counsel Ashok Agarwal. The PIL alleged that Bhartiya Vidya Bhavan Mehta Vidyalaya on Kasturba Gandhi Marg has been charging over 38 per cent extra fee from differently-abled students in comparison to the general ones.
The petition has sought court's directions to the school to forthwith stop charging higher fee from differently-abled students and refund the excess fees charged in past three years.
According to the plea, the school has nearly 80 differently-abled students and the fee being charged from them is even higher than the maximum fee charged by the school from class XII general students.
"The students with disabilities are charged fee and other charges between 38 to 39 per cent higher than what is charged from general students in the academic year 2012-2013.
"A Class IV differently-abled student is charged tuition fee of Rs 44,640 and the general students of the same class is charged tuition fee of Rs 32,160 during 2012-2013, which is 38 per cent (Rs 12,480) higher in case of differently-abled students compared to general students," the PIL has said.