A larger bench of Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday barred the private schools to raise the school fee by more than five percent annually after the bench released its order, which it reserved some time back. The larger bench of the SHC headed by Justice Aqeel Ahmed Abbasi comprised of Justice Muhmmad Ali Mazhar & Justice Ashraf Jahan ruled that any increase by more than five percent in school fee annually would be illegal.
The bench ruled that private schools would not be allowed to raise the school fee by more than five percent and declared that decision applied to all students and private schools, which are governed under Sindh Private Educational Institutions (Regulation & Control) Ordinance 2001 and Sindh Private Educational Institutions (Regulation & Control) Rules 2005.
The bench heard the identical petitions against raise in the tuition fees by private schools. Petitioners Bushra Jabeen, Arshad Fawad, Muhammad Shariq Feroze and six hundred other parents challenged the increase in school fee, seeking its reversal on the ground that it is in violation of rules and regulations of ordnance related to private institutions.
The judgment mentioned that petitions were filed by the parents of students studying in various schools and expressed their concern over the exorbitant increase in school fee in each academic year without any lawful justification or ground.
The Sindh Government also supported the petitioners and opposed the increase in the school fee by the private schools and submitted that private schools can't increase the school fee without the prior approval of competent authority.
The Additional Advocate General Sindh submitted in the court that the provincial government had the authority to regulate the affairs of the private schools, which can't increase the school fee without the permission of the provincial government.
He submitted that the provincial government didn't allow private schools to enhance the school fee by more than five percent and they raised it at their own.
The counsel for petitioners submitted that Supreme Court also declared the private schools business is considered a profitable business and said that state has the authority to define the rules for doing business as well as refrain the undue profit.
Meanwhile, a divisional bench of the SHC headed by chief Justice SHC Ahmed Ali Sheikh ordered Anti-Terrorism Court (ATC) to submit its comments by September 24 in a petition, which sought the transfer of trial of Naqeebullah Mahsood murder case to other court.
Father of deceased Naqeebullah Mahsood, which was allegedly killed in fake police encounter filed a petition a in SHC for transfer of trial of his son's murder case from ATC-2 to some other court after he showed distrust in the proceedings of the said court to conduct impartial and fair trial of his son's murder.
The SHC bench also issued notices to Rao Anwar, former SSP Malir, who is main accused in Mahsood murder case along with others. The petitioner submitted in the court that he had no faith in ATC, which extended undue concessions to Rao Anwar and even granted him bail.
The petitioner's counsel told the court that the ATC didn't submit its reply in the bench when the Chief Justice inquired about the reply of trial court. The petitioner prayed the court to refrain ATC from trial of Mahsood trial case.
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