Hike In Exam Fees: Delhi High Court Seeks CBSE, Centre, AAP Govt Responses

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court issued a notice on Wednesday over a petition filed against the increase in examination fees for students of class X and XII by the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) for board examinations.

The Delhi High Court Chief Justice DN Patel headed division bench, also comprising Justice Prateek Jalan, issued notice to the CBSE, Delhi Government and the Central government over the plea. The petition was filed by Parents Forum for Meaningful Education.

The plea which was filed through advocates PS Sharda and Kshitij Sharda said that the CBSE arbitrarily hiked its examination fee for Class X and Class XII Board examinations by two folds for the year 2019-20 as compared to 2017-18 and several folds compared to 2014-15.

The fee effectively translates to about Rs 2400 in case of practical science and additional subject option case and enhanced by 2400 per cent in case of SC/ST candidates, the petitioner said.

“Due to inability to afford the blatantly arbitrary enhancement of fee by poor stakeholders of government and aided schools under R2 (Delhi government), it wisely met the fee obligation to R1 for academic year 2019-2020 and assured the stakeholders that it would have the same sorted out for future to avoid repeat of this malady in future,” the plea read, according to news agency IANS.

The plea also mentioned the Delhi government’s failure to sort out the matter as promised last year and that it has declined to meet the steep fee obligation this year thereby abandoning lakhs of children in class X and XII in its schools.

“This has directly hit children hailing from economically poor sections who are from economically weak and deprived sections of society studying in the government and aided schools in class X and Class XII under R2 and are consequently imperilled and if not rescued will get left abandoned which cannot be acceptable to any responsible state,” the plea stated.