Private schools must display fee so parents’ purses don’t burn, Madras High Court rules

Justice M Dhandapani, acting on a plea of All India Private Educational Institutions Association which was disputing a direction over fee display, noted that though private schools are not covered under the Right To Information (RTI), displaying fee details is “still a statutory obligation” under the Tamil Nadu Private Schools (Regulation) Rules, 2023, which require the schools to display fees on notice boards and websites.

“It should not be lost sight of that the parents, who want to admit their kids in the school of a good choice to secure their future, should also be provided with the details as to the fees payable to enable them to decide on admitting their kids in the said school, as their purse should not burn, which would have a detrimental effect on the household. Only with a view to allow the parents to decide effectively and plan the future of their child,” the order added.

The court, therefore, directed the “private schools to display the fee structure fixed by the Fee Determination Committee” and any other fee approved by the competent authority in line with the Private Schools Act on the “notice board and website of the respective private schools”. The court also asked the same to be updated by the private schools a month before the start of each academic year.

Justice M Dhandapani exempted private schools from the ambit of the RTI Act.

The matter arose from an RTI application filed on October 26, 2022, with the Public Information Officer of the Chief Educational Officer, Coimbatore, asking for details of the fee structure and rules applicable to private matriculation and higher secondary schools as per government guidelines.

Instead of providing the information, the application was transferred to the District Education Officer (Private Schools), who later forwarded the same to over 100 private school principals. The applicant, however, claimed that no information was provided within the statutory period of 30 days.

As the information was not furnished, the applicant approached the Tamil Nadu State Information Commission, which in May slapped a Rs 25,000 fine against the public authorities while issuing showcause notices to state education officials. The commission also directed all private schools, including CBSE and aided schools, to display the fee structures on their notice boards, websites and admission forms.

Challenging the direction of the commission, Advocate E Vijay Anand appearing for the All India Private Educational Institutions Association argued that the RTI Act didn’t apply to private institutions, as they were not public authorities. All educational institutions throughout the state were directed to comply with the directions, which is illegal, unconstitutional and without jurisdiction, the petitioner contended.

On the other hand, T Gowthaman, counsel for the Director of Private Schools, said that the fees fixed for private schools by the Fee Determination Committee are displayed on its website. “Therefore, what is fixed and what is to be charged by every private school is already available on the website of the committee, and no private school is permitted to collect any fee over and above what has been determined and fixed by the committee,” it added.

Fee details already public, no prejudice to schools: State

The state counsel supported the commission’s direction, stating that the petition was not maintainable as the petitioner association had not mentioned the affected members, and argued that the original RTI applicant was not made a party to the proceedings.

The counsel submitted that the fee details sought under the RTI application were not confidential, as the fee structure is already publicly available on the official website of the Fee Determination Committee. It was argued that the consequential direction to display the same in the notice board cannot be said to be creating any prejudice or new obligations on the private educational institutions.

The high court ruling set aside the penalty imposed on the officials of the education department but directed the Director of Private Schools to “ensure display of fee structure at the entrance of the school and report compliance”. The high court said its direction will apply to the private schools falling within the aegis of the petitioner, besides other private schools recognised under the Private Schools Act. The display board should show the fees fixed by the Fee Determination Committee and the ones approved by the competent authority.