Capital’s private schools barred from fee hikes
IHC’s Justice Aamer Farooq says PEIRA authorised to regulate school fee
Photo: Reuters
ISLAMABAD:
Private schools in the federal capital on Friday were barred from unilaterally increasing fees with the regulator of such schools deemed as the authorised body to affix school fees.
This was ruled on Friday by a single-member bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC), comprising Justice Aamer Farooq, after listening to arguments from all sides in miscellaneous petitions regarding the fee structure of private schools in the city.
Justice Farooq, who read out the short verdict on Friday, ruled that the Private Educational Institutions Regulatory Authority (PEIRA) should take follow the Supreme Court’s September 2019, decision regarding the increase in fees of private schools.
The bench noted being a regulator of private schools in the federal capital, PEIRA is authorised to determine the fees of educational institutions.
The court further ordered PEIRA to decide a complaint filed by Dr Uzma Qazi over the expulsion of her children from private schools after giving a patient hearing to the institutions concerned.
The court had earlier clubbed identical petitions moved by the Private Schools Association challenging PEIRA’s attempts to regulate fees of schools in the city and petitions filed by parents against the alleged harassment of their children in private schools.
The private schools had adopted the stance that the PEIRA is not authorised to serve them notices or take action regarding the fee structure.
Earlier in January, Justice Farooq had asked representatives of PEIRA whether the process to formulate new rules of the authority was complete. To this, a PIERA representative had replied that he will be able to discuss the matter at the next hearing after consulting the federal education ministry.
Justice Farooq had further asked whether PEIRA can take measures to regulate fees of private schools. At this, PEIRA’s lawyer intervened and said that they were legally empowered to do so, however, a case challenging these powers was pending in an intra-court appeal.
The matter of revised fees for schools in the federal capital would have been settled much earlier, however, it was delayed due to an application for a stay filed by the Private Schools Association (PSA) in October 2019.
The applicant’s counsel had argued before Justice Farooq that the Supreme Court (SC) verdict regarding the recalculation of school fees was limited to schools from Sindh and Punjab, and did not include the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT).
He pleaded the court to declare the orders of fees recalculation by PEIRA as void.
At this, the court had sent notices to respondents, seeking clarification and stopped the authority from taking any action against private schools in the meantime.
However, at Friday’s hearing, months-long arguments by the respective counsels were concluded and Justice Farooq decided that PIERA, being the regulator, will approve any increase in the fees of private schools.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 29th, 2020.
Private schools in the federal capital on Friday were barred from unilaterally increasing fees with the regulator of such schools deemed as the authorised body to affix school fees.
This was ruled on Friday by a single-member bench of the Islamabad High Court (IHC), comprising Justice Aamer Farooq, after listening to arguments from all sides in miscellaneous petitions regarding the fee structure of private schools in the city.
Justice Farooq, who read out the short verdict on Friday, ruled that the Private Educational Institutions Regulatory Authority (PEIRA) should take follow the Supreme Court’s September 2019, decision regarding the increase in fees of private schools.
The bench noted being a regulator of private schools in the federal capital, PEIRA is authorised to determine the fees of educational institutions.
The court further ordered PEIRA to decide a complaint filed by Dr Uzma Qazi over the expulsion of her children from private schools after giving a patient hearing to the institutions concerned.
The court had earlier clubbed identical petitions moved by the Private Schools Association challenging PEIRA’s attempts to regulate fees of schools in the city and petitions filed by parents against the alleged harassment of their children in private schools.
The private schools had adopted the stance that the PEIRA is not authorised to serve them notices or take action regarding the fee structure.
Earlier in January, Justice Farooq had asked representatives of PEIRA whether the process to formulate new rules of the authority was complete. To this, a PIERA representative had replied that he will be able to discuss the matter at the next hearing after consulting the federal education ministry.
Justice Farooq had further asked whether PEIRA can take measures to regulate fees of private schools. At this, PEIRA’s lawyer intervened and said that they were legally empowered to do so, however, a case challenging these powers was pending in an intra-court appeal.
The matter of revised fees for schools in the federal capital would have been settled much earlier, however, it was delayed due to an application for a stay filed by the Private Schools Association (PSA) in October 2019.
The applicant’s counsel had argued before Justice Farooq that the Supreme Court (SC) verdict regarding the recalculation of school fees was limited to schools from Sindh and Punjab, and did not include the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT).
He pleaded the court to declare the orders of fees recalculation by PEIRA as void.
At this, the court had sent notices to respondents, seeking clarification and stopped the authority from taking any action against private schools in the meantime.
However, at Friday’s hearing, months-long arguments by the respective counsels were concluded and Justice Farooq decided that PIERA, being the regulator, will approve any increase in the fees of private schools.
Published in The Express Tribune, February 29th, 2020.