High Court notice to Delhi govt on plea for admission of poor kids

New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday issued notice to the city government on a plea seeking direction to ensure the school admission of over 44,000 children belonging to weaker sections and disadvantaged groups.

Asking the city government to respond to the Public Interest Litigation (PIL), a bench of Justice Rajiv Shakdher and Justice Talwant Singh posted the matter for further hearing on April 26.

The petitioner organisation 'Justice for All', through advocates Khagesh B. Jha and Shikha Sharma Bagga, also sought direction to Delhi's Directorate of Education to initiate action against those schools that failed to admit such students to their allotted seats.

The plea contended that among those children who applied for admission in April 2021 for the session 2021-22, nearly 50,000 are entitled to admission as per the actual enrolment in the school.

It was alleged that the Directorate of Education delayed the process on their own and now is refusing the admission on the grounds of delay in admission which is the duty of the appropriate government.

It also alleged blatant violation of the fundamental rights of over 50,000 children waiting for admission since April 2021 and are victims of the government inaction to perform their duty imposed with them under the provisions of Articles 19(1)(a), 21, and 21A of the Constitution.

Further, the petitioner sought the court's direction to the respondent city government to ensure the admission of over the 44,000 eligible children under the provisions of section 12(1)(c) of the Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009.