New fee law without immediate relief an eye wash: Atishi on Delhi School Fees Bill 2025

New Delhi [India], April 30 (ANI): A day after the Delhi Cabinet approved the Delhi School Education Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees Bill, 2025, AAP leader and Leader of Opposition (LoP) Atishi urged Chief Minister Rekha Gupta to take urgent measures to protect parents from the arbitrary fee hikes by private schools for the current academic year.
In a letter to Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, Atishi said that the draft bill seeks to regulate future fee hike from academic year 2026-27 onwards - and even those provisions will need to be examined, leaving the "most" important question unanswered: what happens to the fees already hiked by private schools this year?
She questioned what would happen to the parents facing these problems in the current academic year, 2025-26, and said that if the Delhi government is serious about controlling excessive fee hikes by private schools, then it must take certain measures.
Atishi said that an order should be issued stopping all fee hikes and new charges introduced by private schools for the current academic year.
She said that any school that has already taken the hike in fees should be directed to refund the same immediately
She said schools should not be allowed to increase fees or introduce new charges till the new Act comes into effect
Adding further, she said that the draft Bill should be put in the public domain for feedback from all stakeholders. It should be placed in the Delhi Assembly after this feedback is incorporated
"In the absence of controlling the excessive and unreasonable fee hike in the current academic year, passing a new law for the coming years would seem merely an eye-wash," stated Atishi in the letter.
In a move to curb arbitrary fee hikes by private schools, the Delhi Cabinet on Tuesday approved the Delhi School Education Transparency in Fixation and Regulation of Fees Bill, 2025, bringing relief to thousands of students and parents across the capital.
Addressing growing concerns over frequent and unregulated fee increases by private schools, the Delhi Cabinet, under the leadership of Chief Minister Rekha Gupta, cleared the bill on Tuesday. The bill is expected to apply to 1,677 private schools in the city.
Chief Minister Rekha Gupta stated that the government has swiftly responded to the recent widespread panic among students and parents regarding the hikes in school fees.
"The issue of school fees had been ongoing for several days. We also examined the procedure for increasing school fees and sent District Magistrates to investigate complaints, conduct audits, and review the procedures behind fee hikes."
Adding further, she said, "Section 17(3) of the existing Delhi School Education Act, 1973, failed to define government authority in this matter clearly. Since 1973, no government has taken a concrete decision on this issue. However, the bill, which has been passed today, will now apply to 1,677 schools across Delhi."
Delhi Education Minister Ashish Sood described the bill as a step toward complete transparency.
"The new law introduces a structured process to determine if school fees can be increased," he said, emphasising that students and parents across 1,677 schools will now experience much-needed relief.
The key provisions of the bill include a three-tier committee structure that will govern fee regulation.
The first level comprises the School-Level Fee Regulation Committee, which includes a DOE nominee, five parents selected by lottery (two women and one SC/ST member), and school representatives.
The second level includes the District-Level Committee, which is invoked if the first level fails to resolve the issue within 30 days.
The third level includes the State-Level Committee, which is invoked if the issue remains unresolved at the district level within 30-45 days.
Parents representing at least 15 per cent of a school's students can directly escalate a case to the district committee if dissatisfied.
The Delhi Education Minister said, "Our goal is to establish a transparent system. Previous governments failed to act on this issue. Violating schools may face penalties ranging from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 10 lakh for non-compliance or bypassing the process."
He further added that the bill has been passed and will soon be implemented by the Delhi government. Additionally, a session will be called, and the bill will be passed in the Vidhan Sabha as well. (ANI)