Bombay High Court quashes Maharashtra GRs on school disqualification

The Bombay High Court has held that the Maharashtra government’s resolutions disqualifying schools from grant-in-aid violate natural justice. The court directed the state to delete petitioner schools from the list and said no action can be taken without individual hearing.

,. The bench of Justice Madhav Jamdar and Justice Pravin Patil said the action of closing primary and secondary schools without giving an opportunity to be heard violates principles of natural justice.

The court directed the state government to delete the names of the petitioner institutions from the list of schools published with the GRs. “The petitioners would continue their respective schools and no action as contemplated under the GRs can be initiated against them,” the order said.

The two GRs had declared 433 primary schools and 324 secondary schools disqualified from receiving grant-in-aid. The resolutions directed these schools to apply under the Maharashtra Self-Financed Schools Act, 2012 before April 30. The GRs stated that if the schools failed to apply, their recognition would be cancelled, resulting in closure of the schools.

The court noted that the GRs would affect schools across Maharashtra, with most of these schools imparting education in Marathi medium, especially in villages. The judges said that with these GRs, most Marathi medium schools in village areas of the state would be closed.

The bench observed a contradiction in the state’s approach. “The state government at one hand is insisting that Marathi language should be given importance in the state and on the other hand, by said action, trying to close down Marathi schools,” the judges held. They added that this action is not in accordance with the objective the state is trying to achieve.

The judges highlighted factors the state must consider before closing schools. These include whether schools can be converted into self-finance schools under the GR, particularly when the Self-Finance Act has a procedure for granting permission. Also, whether staff who teach and staff who do not teach in Marathi primary and secondary schools can be absorbed in self-finance schools, as there are no provisions for absorption of staff in schools that do not receive grant-in-aid.

The court also noted that students from families that lack money and are studying in Marathi medium schools cannot be deprived of primary and secondary education which management of these schools is trying to provide. Thirdly, the court said whether students can be accommodated in schools in the vicinity, especially in village areas and areas where there is a lack of schools for students to study. Also, whether the medium of instruction can be continued in other schools. The bench said the state government ignored these facts.

The court said the government must conduct a hearing for each school before taking any action against them.

The petitioner schools, including two Urdu medium schools, argued that the state did not provide any opportunity to be heard before taking this action. The bench noted that the state failed to bring on record if any hearing opportunity was given to the petitioners and whether the factors mentioned above were considered.

The court held that the GRs of April 1 and April 2 do not apply to the extent of the petitioners and directed the deletion of their names from the list.