The Islamabad High Court (IHC) Monday issued stay orders in a petition of Private School Association (PSA) challenging a notice of Private Educational Institutions Regulatory Authority (PEIRA) regarding calculation/fixation of grade-wise basic fee of all private educational institutions of the federal capital. A single bench of IHC comprising Justice Aamer Farooq heard the petition of the PSA Islamabad challenging the notice of the PEIRA dated September 23 and suspended the same till the next hearing.

Earlier, the PEIRA warned the private schools of Islamabad in the said notice that no student "shall be deprived of his/her constitutional right to education" in the event of late fee payments resulting from the process of recalculation and determination of fees in accordance with a recent Supreme Court judgment.

The PEIRA in an official letter, following the recommendation of a subcommittee of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Education, informed the principals of all Islamabad-based private schools that the current fees being charged stand frozen at the rate prevailing in January 2017.

The said letter further stated, "In pursuance to detailed judgment of the Supreme Court dated 13-09-2019, passed in private schools fees determination case, all private educational institutions (private schools, colleges) offering education in any manner up to intermediate or 'A' level or equivalent level are herby informed that current fees being charged with stand frozen at the rates of prevailing in January 2017 till the finalization of recalculation process."

The PEIRA also directed schools to submit "grade-wise base fees of January 2017 till 27-09-2019 positively to enable this authority to accordingly recalculate/determine prevailing grade wise base fees in accordance with the judgment." The authority added that no private educational institution "shall receive amount reduced under order of Supreme Court in arrears under any circumstances."

A subcommittee of the National Assembly Standing Committee on Education, headed by MNA Ali Nawaz Awan, in its meeting a few days ago had directed PEIRA to implement the SC's orders and write to schools asking them not to take adverse action against students in the event that their parents do not submit fees during the process of recalculation.

In a detailed judgment issued recently, the SC decided that private schools would charge the same fees as in January 2017. Justice Ijazul Ahsan, who authored the verdict, also expressed concerns over reports that schools have raised fees excessively since 2017.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019