HC stays AAP govt order scrapping management quota

In a blow to AAP government, Delhi High Court today stayed its order to scrap management quota as well as 11 other criteria regarding nursery admissions, saying it was issued "without any authority" and was in conflict with an earlier order of the Lieutenant Governor.
The 11 criteria include those relating to the proven track record of parents, their proficiency in music or sports, their empirical achievements, the gender of the child and whether the kid was the first born or adopted.
Justice Manmohan was of the prima facie view that Delhi government's January 6 order, scrapping a total of 62 criteria and management quota, was "issued without any authority" and was in "direct conflict" with the Lieutenant Governor's 2007 order on nursery admissions in private unaided schools.

He also said the court was of the prima facie view "there is nothing in the 11 criteria which would show that they are unreasonable or based on whims and fancies and/or they can lead to mal-administration."
"It is pertinent to mention that order dated November 24, 2007 under section 3(1) of the Delhi School Education Act, 1973 and Rule 43 of the Delhi School Education Rules, 1973, permitted management quota upto twenty per cent.
"Consequently, this Court is prima facie of the view that the impugned order cannot supersede, amend or modify the order dated November 24, 2007 which has been occupying the field...

"Consequently, this court is prima facie of the view that the impugned order has been issued without any authority. This court is also of the prima facie view that being in direct conflict with the order of 2007, it is the impugned order which will have to give way," the court said.

In its 33-page interim order, it also observed that "promoters of a school who make investment at their own personal risk are entitled to full autonomy in administration including the right to admit students."
"However, any alleged malpractice in utilisation of the management quota like sale of seats being actionable should be investigated and taken to its logical conclusion in accordance with law, but it cannot be a ground to abolish the quota itself. After all, vesting of discretion is not bad, but to misuse it, is illegal," it added.

The petitioner associations had later agreed that till
the entire matter was finally decided they would, in the interim, confine their challenge to scrapping of 11 out of the 62 criteria and the management quota.
In its order, the court said "taking into account the parentage of the child may be relevant in certain circumstances, for instance, if the father of the child was a recipient of a gallantry award or a sports award or had given valuable advice and service to the school like a doctor, then giving preference to such a ward in admission would not constitute mal-administration. In all probability, such parents would contribute to the growth and evolution of the school as well as its students.

"It is pertinent to mention that even the economically weaker section (EWS) category is based on parentage of the child itself. The criteria which promote admission of a girl child and/or adopted children are not only in consonance with constitutional norms, but also need of the hour," it said.
On the issue of management quota, the court said the high court-appointed Ganguly committee and the government had done a balancing act whereby the 100 per cent discretion enjoyed by private schools in admissions was minimised, but not abolished.
"It is pertinent to mention that management quota had been recommended by expert Ganguly committee formed by a division bench and accepted and approved by the Government of Delhi in its order of 2007.

"Even the office order dated December 18, 2013 issued by the Lt Governor seeking to delete management quota was quashed by judgment dated November 28, 2014... Consequently, at this prima facie stage, the deletion of management quota by way of an office order is impermissible in law," the court said.
Referring to the January 6 order, the court said "the present case does not pertain to any general executive action, but to a specific statute wherein power has been given to Administrator/LG to issue regulation in a particular manner.
"It is well settled that if a statute requires a thing to be done in a particular manner, it should be done in that manner or not all."

"Consequently, till final disposal of the writ petitions, the impugned order of January 6, 2016 is stayed with respect to the 11 criteria and management quota," it added.
In an earlier hearing, Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia had defended his government's decision to scrap the quota criteria, alleging that private unaided schools in the national capital had become a "hub of corruption" as they were running "admission rackets" under the garb of management quota.