IHC rejects private schools’ plea against 20pc fee cut

ISLAMABAD: The Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday rejected the private school association’s plea seeking a stay order against the Private Educational Institutions Regulatory Authority’s (Peira) notification of 20 percent discount in the students’ tuition fee during the two-month vacations.

Justice Aamer Farooq heard the association’s petition. In the wake of coronavirus lockdown, the Peirahas directed all the federal capital private schools to give 20 percent discount in the tuition-fee during the two-month vocations.

The petitioner's counsel pleaded that PEIRA issued a notification on April 8, regarding fee reduction without hearing the private schools association's stance. He said the Authority didn't take the stakeholders into confidence and notified the fee structure without keeping in view the schools' problems.

He prayed the court to suspend the notification. Justice Aamer Farooq remarked that the private schools should have announced relief for the students themselves in the current scenario. He remarked that it wouldn't burden the private schools coffers if they didn't earn profit for two months.

The bench remarked that if the decision was reviewed, the tuition fee could be reduced to 15 percent or it could be fifty percent. “There is an extraordinary situation in the country,” the court remarked and asked the petition whether it had approached the federal government in this regard.

The court rejected the Association’s plea and sent the matter to PEIRA. Meanwhile, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) Monday re-issued notices to the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) on the bail plea of Khawaja Anwar Majeed, an accomplice of former president Asif Ali Zardari in mega money laundering, park lane and fake bank accounts references.

A division bench, comprising Justice Aamir Farooq and Justice Mohsin Akhtar Kayani, heard the bail plea of Khawaja Anwar Majeed, chief of the Omni Group. Majeed has sought bail on medical grounds.

During the hearing, the court issued notice to the NAB seeking reply besides ordering submission of a new medical report on the health of the accused. Later the court adjourned the hearing for a week.