Hyderabad: Agitated members of Hyderabad Schools Parents’ Association (HSPA) met Telangana education minister Kadiyam Srihari on Thursday to discuss issues arising due to the stay order issued by the High Court on the government order asking schools not to increase their fees for the next academic year.
The minister promised to call a meeting with his department officials and advocate general to discuss further options to solve the fee hike issue and take further action. The parents said that the minister expressed his anguish at the court giving self-contradictory orders.
Mrs Seema Agarawal, member, HSPA said, ‘’The High Court ordered, in a PIL filed by us, to investigate 162 schools. When we investigated them and issued show cause notices, the Court stayed any action on the show cause notices. The latest order allowing schools to increase the fees is again a stumbling block in the efforts of the government to stop profiteering by private schools.’’
She adds, “While HSPA accepted the contradiction in the orders of the High Court-HSPA’s own efforts being vexed by the court not giving a hearing to its cases, it also pointed to the weak defence put up by the government's legal team in the courts. We in turn pointed out to the fact that the Independent Schools’ Management Association (ISMA) in its petition in the High Court to get the stay order ‘claimed’ that none of the parents whose children are the pupils of the ISMA schools have any complaint against reasonable increase of 10 to 15 per cent of fee.’’
