School fee case: Verdict to affect industry, budget, institutions, says CJP

ISLAMABAD: The Chief Justice of Pakistan, Justice Asif Saeed Khan Khosa, on Wednesday observed that the verdict on school fee case would affect industry, other institutions and the budget as expensive education is a matter of national security.

He said the court could set aside the law if it is contradictory to fundamental rights but cannot make changes in it. A three-member bench of the apex court was hearing the case of private schools fee. The chief justice observed if the owners of private educational institutions have reservations about the relevant law, why they do not press the government for making changes in it.

The chief justice, while responding to the arguments of Shahid Hamid, counsel for Beacon House School System, said it is not the job of court to make changes in the law but the legislature.

The chief justice said that in democratic form of government, the elected public representatives make legislation in parliament and hence the democratic process moves forward. Shahid Hamid, however, contended that they are not against the process of regulating the private schools but fixing a specific ratio for increasing the fee is unreasonable.

At this, the chief justice asked as to how the court can rule that five percent increase in the fee is reasonable or unreasonable, saying if the managements of private schools are opposing this, they should approach the government in this regard.

The chief justice recalled that last year, the court had ordered the private schools to reduce their fee by 20 percent, however, the management of private schools in response violated its order and said as to how the court could do it.

The chief justice said that as per Article 25A of the Constitution, the state is responsible for providing basic education but the government, while promoting the private educational institutions, outsource the process of imparting education.

The chief justice elaborated that as private educational institutions are imparting education together with the government, therefore, for this purpose, the owners of private schools are bound to abide by the government regulations.

Shahzad Ilahi, another lawyer representing private schools, while arguing contended that Article 25A talks about education but not about inexpensive education adding that the executive is responsible for determining the raise in fee. He said that the executive also controls the prices of daily use commodities.

Justice Ijazul Ahsen, another member of the bench, observed that the annual fee of a private school is Rs353 million while the ratio in the annual profit of private school is 36 percent. “Is there such a profit in any business other than narcotics?” Justice Ahsen questioned. The chief justice said that the court is not against the profit of private schools but there should be a limit for increase in fee.

“If private schools don’t like regulations, they should not opt for licence and those who need licence they would have to abide by the regulations”, the CJP remarked.

When the counsel referred to the judgment of the high court, the CJP said that the learned high court has come up with some results but that’s not the law saying the court has to look into things as per law but not on the basis of recommendations.

Shahid Hamid while referring to Article 18 of the Constitution contended that private schools are business and legal business is a constitutional right of every citizen, hence no restrictions could be made in this type of business. “You mean that placing the limit in increase of fee is unconstitutional”, the CJP asked the counsel to which Shahid Hamid replied that fixing the limit of five percent increase is not only unconstitutional but unjustified as well.

Justice Ijazu Ahsen, while citing the audit report, recalled after all the expenditure, the profit of Beacon House School is Rs1.4 billion and asked the counsel as to how he can say that limiting the increase in fee is unjustified. The chief justice asked the counsel to look into the audit report, which portrays profit of billions of rupees while the counsel is saying that the government is not authorised to regulate the private schools.

The counsel, however, contended that not a single parent has so far complained of high fee. He said that nobody is forcing the parents to admit their children to private schools but in fact, they want their children to get education in private schools.

The chief justice however, said that he very much cares about those poor children who are left far away from education. Meanwhile the court adjourned the hearing for today (Thursday).