Supreme Court seeks compliance reports from states on 25% RTE quota implementation

New Delhi: The Supreme Court has sought compliance reports from several states and Union Territories on the implementation of Section 12(1)(c) of the Right to Education (RTE) Act, which mandates 25 per cent reservation for children from weaker and disadvantaged sections in private unaided schools. The court warned that failure to file affidavits could lead to the summoning of Principal Secretaries of state Education Departments.

A bench of Justices Vikram Nath, Sandeep Mehta and Vijay Bishnoi was hearing a petition filed by Md Imran Ahmad regarding enforcement of the provision. Senior advocate Salman Khurshid, appearing for the petitioner, submitted a chart categorising states and UTs into five groups based on their level of implementation, ranging from refusal to implement the law to partial compliance or lack of proof.

The bench granted four weeks to Punjab, West Bengal, Kerala, Goa, Arunachal Pradesh, Meghalaya, Nagaland and Puducherry to file affidavits confirming the “true and faithful implementation” of the RTE provision. The court said non-compliance could result in officials being summoned. The Supreme Court also noted that Ladakh, Jammu and Kashmir, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Mizoram and Sikkim were not represented during the hearing. The registry was directed to send copies of the order to the concerned Chief Secretaries and standing counsel within a week. The matter will next be heard on July 22. (IANS)

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