PHC orders uniform policy on tuition fees

PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court (PHC) has directed the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Private Schools Regulatory Authority to formulate uniform policy on fees.

"Until and unless the uniform policy of fee including the annual and tuition fee is formulated, there shall be a complete ban on any increase in the annual tuition fees," the PHC division bench issued these orders in a detailed judgment passed by Justice Waqar Ahmad Seth and Justice Ijaz Anwar.

The court said the annual increase was totally unjustified because there was no raw material used and hence the annual increase under no circumstances should be more than 3 per cent in the private educational institutions.

The bench ordered that the regulatory authority shall also formulate policy on the uniform, textbooks and their purchase and syllabus, qualification of teacher, pay/salary and maximum strength of students in a class/section.

"The private educational institutions shall not charge more than half of the tuition fee from second/third children of the same parents and start compulsory Physical Training (PT) classes, effective measures for corporal punishment and minimum number of students in a class," explained the detailed judgment.

The PHC passed the detailed judgment in two writ petitions filed by Peshawar Bar Association through president and general secretary against the increase in annual fee, taking transport charges during vacations and other extra charges by the private educational institutions.

The petitioners were represented by lawyers Abbas Khan Sangeen, Zahidullah Zahid, Fazal Shah Mohmand and Zulfiqar Khan Khalil. "As regarding the exiting institutions the regulatory authority as well as the Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, throughout Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, are directed to formulate the policy and measures for implementing the policy to the extent of buildings including playgrounds, assembly premises, hall, furniture, libraries, washrooms, water facilities and laboratory within a period of one year," the judgment stated. However, the court stated that buildings/superstructure of the missionary education system is to be kept in mind for the purpose.

The court observed that running schools in the residential premises was highly deplorable. It advised the regulatory authority and the BISE to chalk out the programme for shifting the same to non-residential side.

Regarding charging tuition fee during the vacations, the court said it seemed to be illogical one, as there was no service provided during the vacations. However, the court said, keeping in view the expenses of the administration regarding their own expenses and the expenses to be incurred in the shape of payment of salaries and utilities bills, these charges are allowed to maximum 50 percent. However, the high court directed the regulatory authority to submit its report on the policy as declared in the judgment to the registrar (judicial) of the high court within three months.