With the admission season on, the Supreme Court on Thursday began a crucial hearing on the validity of some provisions of the Right to Free and Compulsory Education Act with minority and private unaided institutions opposing the mandatory reservation of 25 per cent seats for economically backward sections under the legislation.
A Bench comprising Chief Justice S.H. Kapadia and Justices K.S. Radhakrishnan and Swantanter Kumar took up the matter on a priority basis keeping in mind that the admission process for the nursery has to be completed by April.
Opening the arguments for some Uttar Pradesh-based minority institutions and Association of Unaided Schools from Karnataka, former additional solicitor general Vikas Singh put up a 3-point opposition to the law contending that it violated the rights of private educational institutions under Article 19(1)(g).
He said the Act was coming in the way of autonomy of private managements to run their institutions without government interference.
Mr Singh said it was for the state to ensure the right to education to children between the age of 6 to 14 years but it has no right to impose any reservation on minority and unaided private schools.
Further, the Act, he said, violates the rights of private institutions guarated under Article 19(g) as "minority and private unaided institutions have a right to admit students of their choice".
"Any legislation cannot interfere with that right," the senior advocate submitted.
He said private and minority institutions cannot be forced to work under the Act as it would amount to interfering with their right to administration which is recognised by the CBSE, ICSE or the state board.
During the hearing on January 21, the court had taken note of the government affidavit which said the issue did not involve Article 15(5) of the Constitution.
The court said a three-judge bench can hear the matter if the issue of of basic principle of the Constituion was not raised.
The main petitioner society for Un-aided Private Schools, Rajasthan, and a host of associations representing various private schools have questioned the validity of the Act on the ground that it impinged on their rights to run the educational institutions.
The apex court had noted that since the amendment to the Constitution which led to the enactment of the Right to Education Act has been challenged, the matter would be placed before a larger bench to decide its legal validity.
The petitioners had contended that the issues involved in the Act relate to Article 15 (5) and to Article 21(A) of the Constitution.